Wreaths in Front of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Amid Unending Controversies...

Arson Attack on Floral Tribute Supporting 70s Male Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol

Installed for the First Time in October Last Year Amid Conflict Between Minister Chu Mi-ae and Prosecutor General Yoon

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] As Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae and Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol clash, support wreaths for Prosecutor General Yoon have begun to be installed in front of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Controversy surrounding these wreaths continues. Recently, an incident involving setting fire to the wreaths also occurred.

According to the police on the 9th, on the morning of the 5th, Moon (74), who advocates for prosecutorial reform, poured an inflammable substance on the wreaths supporting Prosecutor General Yoon and set them on fire. Although officials from the Supreme Prosecutors' Office immediately extinguished the fire, five wreaths were burned.

Before and after the arson, Moon distributed a document titled "Self-immolation Will," claiming he had been harmed by the prosecution in the past and advocating for prosecutorial reform. He also wrote in the distributed paper that he had self-immolated in front of the National Assembly on April 26, 2013, while advocating for prosecutorial reform.

The police arrested Moon and conducted an investigation, applying for an arrest warrant on charges of arson of general property. However, on the 7th, Choi Chang-hoon, the judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, held a pre-arrest suspect hearing (warrant review) for Moon and dismissed the warrant, stating, "It is difficult to see any risk of flight or evidence destruction."

Following the dismissal of the warrant, criticism arose against the prosecution that requested it. Shin Dong-geun, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "It is hard to accept that a man in his 70s burning five wreaths is a matter warranting an arrest warrant." He added, "Although the police applied for the arrest warrant, the final request is made by the prosecution. If the arsoned items were not wreaths supporting the Prosecutor General, it is hard to believe that an arrest warrant would have been requested for such a matter."

Even before this arson incident, controversy over the wreaths was intense. The wreaths began to be sent by supporters from October last year to cheer Prosecutor General Yoon after Minister Choo exercised her authority to direct investigations into the Lime Asset Management lobbying scandal and others.

When the wreaths were installed, Jin Hye-won, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, wrote on her Facebook, "Organized crime groups flaunt their power in areas by acquiring nightclubs and hotels, often using many pink and red flowers at opening ceremonies," adding, "I thought a new ○seobangpa gang nightclub had opened in Seocho-dong." In response, the conservative group Patriotic Patrol Team installed wreaths with phrases criticizing Prosecutor Jin, such as "Eastern District Prosecutors' Office Nightclub," at the back door of the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office.

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