Daegu City Files Civil Lawsuit Worth 100 Billion Won Against Shincheonji Church and Chairman Lee Man-hee

Shincheonji Church Members Account for 62% of Daegu's Total 6,899 Confirmed Cases
Church Hinders Quarantine by Omitting Facility and Member Lists Despite Cooperation Requests
Partial Seizure of Daeao Branch Church and Lee Man-hee's Assets Ordered by

Daegu City Political Affairs Special Advisor Jeong Haeyong explaining the small claims lawsuit against Shincheonji at the Situation Room on the 2nd floor of Daegu City Hall on the 22nd.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Dong-wook] Daegu City has filed a civil lawsuit against the Shincheonji Daegu Church and General Assembly President Lee Man-hee, which were identified as the epicenter of the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

According to Daegu City on the 22nd, the Daegu City Litigation Promotion Team submitted a complaint to the Daegu District Court on the 18th. The claimed amount in the lawsuit is 100 billion KRW, a portion of the approximately 146 billion KRW in damages estimated by Daegu City itself. It is expected that this amount will increase through evidence presented during the litigation process.

In the Daegu area, after the first patient was confirmed on February 18, epidemiological investigations revealed that patient number 31 was a Shincheonji member who attended a collective worship service. Despite requests to the Shincheonji church for securing the list of members, active testing, self-quarantine, and cooperation with quarantine measures, Daegu City explained that there were obstructions to quarantine efforts, including omissions in the list of facilities and members.

As a result, among 10,459 Shincheonji members, 4,266 were confirmed positive, accounting for 62% of the total 6,899 confirmed cases in Daegu. Daegu City also filed a complaint with the Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency on February 28 against Shincheonji church executives for obstructing quarantine by omitting member lists and facility status submitted in the early stages of quarantine.

Before filing the lawsuit, Daegu City took preservation measures on some properties of the church and Lee Man-hee through a court's provisional seizure order to freeze Shincheonji church assets. The preservation targets include all floors of the Dadaeoh branch church building, the branch leader’s residence, and deposit claims under the names of the church and Lee Man-hee.

Since around April, when the quarantine situation improved, Daegu City reportedly formed a litigation promotion team consisting of department heads, officials, and seven external lawyers to prepare for this lawsuit.

Attorney Lim Jae-hwa, representing the plaintiff, said, "We are currently analyzing materials provided by the plaintiff Daegu City and related organizations such as the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency regarding specific litigation progress and evidence strategies," adding, "We will determine the responsibility for the pain suffered by citizens who have been greatly affected by the COVID-19 crisis."

A Daegu City official stated, "Considering that the lawsuit for subrogation rights related to the Sewol ferry disaster took about four years until the first trial verdict, this lawsuit is also expected to be a prolonged legal dispute," and added, "We will work closely with the litigation team to ensure thorough execution of the lawsuit."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.