'Impersonating Police' MBC Reporter Accused... Investigation by Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] The investigation into the case of an MBC reporter impersonating a police officer will be handled by the Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency.

On the 15th, the Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency announced, "The case in which two MBC reporters were accused of impersonating police officers during the coverage of the wife of former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol will be investigated by the Violent Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency."

Reporter Y and others are suspected of impersonating police officers while contacting the owner of a vehicle parked in front of the former address of Kim Geon-hee, the wife of former Prosecutor General Yoon, in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, during the investigation to verify Kim's doctoral dissertation on the 7th.

As the controversy spread, MBC excluded the reporters involved from their duties on the 9th and issued an apology through 'News Desk.'

MBC stated, "We confirmed that journalistic ethics were violated during the investigation to verify the doctoral dissertation," and added, "We sincerely apologize to the owner of the affected passenger car and to our viewers."

Meanwhile, the former Prosecutor General Yoon's side reported the reporters to the Seocho Police Station in Seoul, stating, "This is a serious crime involving coercion and impersonation of a public official, as they interrogated an ordinary citizen while impersonating police officers and obtained information."

After the complainant's investigation, the Seocho Police Station transferred the case on the 14th to the Paju Police Station, where the incident occurred.

The Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency said, "Considering the nature of the case, it was decided that the provincial police agency, not the local police, will conduct the investigation," and added, "We will first review the accusations and then plan the investigation schedule."

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