Former Prosecutor General Spokesperson Kwon Soon-jung: "Seizing Public Phone Without Warrant, a Serious Issue Undermining Constitutional Principles"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Kwon Soon-jung, head of the Western Branch of Busan District Prosecutors' Office, who served as the spokesperson for the Supreme Prosecutors' Office when Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, was Prosecutor General, criticized the controversy over the seizure of the spokesperson's official phone by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department, saying, "This situation raises suspicion that they intended to surveil the overall relationship with the media," and demanded a reasonable explanation.

On the 7th, Kwon issued a statement to the press corps, saying, "The Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department attempted to access all electronic information stored on the phone without any restrictions, excluding the former spokesperson, and in fact, access and viewing took place."

He continued, "A reasonable explanation is needed regarding the entire process and circumstances of the warrantless seizure and secret forensic investigation, whether the Prosecutor General approved it and the circumstances thereof, communication with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) during the fact-finding investigation, and whether the results of this forensic investigation were delivered to the CIO."

He said, "The spokesperson and other public relations officers of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office are the only official channels of communication between the prosecution and the media," adding, "Seizing work phones without a warrant and conducting forensic investigations without guaranteeing the participation rights of the former spokesperson seriously undermines the constitutional principle of warrant requirement and procedural legitimacy, as well as infringes on freedom of the press, which is a grave matter."

He also pointed out, "If the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department continues to seize public relations officers' phones without a warrant and conduct forensic investigations excluding their participation based solely on arbitrary judgment, it will suppress the free reporting activities of the media and the activities of the public relations officers."

He was appointed as the first spokesperson of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office under Yoon's administration in July 2019, when Yoon took office as Prosecutor General, and served as Yoon's spokesperson for about a year.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department seized the official phones used by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office spokespersons, from Kwon Soon-jung to former spokesperson Lee Chang-soo and current spokesperson Seo In-sun, on the 29th of last month without a warrant, in the form of voluntary submission.

It is known that the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), which is investigating the 'alleged solicitation of complaints,' secured the phone data obtained by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Department on the 5th in the form of a search and seizure of the Inspection Department.

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