Police Analyze Seized Items from Sarang Jeil Church "Forensic Examination of PCs Related to Congregants"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] The police who conducted a search and seizure at Sarang Jeil Church, where a cluster infection of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) occurred, are carrying out an analysis to verify the exact list of church members.

According to the police on the 22nd, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Intelligent Crime Investigation Unit conducted a search and seizure at Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu from around 8:40 p.m. on the 21st until about 1 a.m. the next day, for approximately 4 hours and 20 minutes, on suspicion of violating the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act.

The police stated that they will analyze the church member-related data stored on PCs inside the church through digital forensics. If necessary, they will also compare the list submitted by the church with the list identified through police analysis.

Earlier, the church submitted a list of about 900 members at the request of the quarantine authorities. However, as doubts about the accuracy of this list grew, the Seoul city government and police attempted to secure the list by visiting the church on the 20th but failed due to the church's non-cooperation. Consequently, the police obtained a search warrant from the court on the 21st and proceeded with a forced investigation. The number of church members is estimated to be between 2,000 and 3,000.

As of noon on the 21st, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases related to Sarang Jeil Church reached 732.

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