Prosecutors Request Supplementary Investigation by Jeong Cheol-seung on Victim Identity Disclosure in 'Park Won-soon Sexual Violence Case'

Attorney Jeong Cheol-seung. / Screenshot from Attorney Jeong Cheol-seung's Facebook

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The prosecution has requested the police to conduct supplementary investigations into lawyer Jeong Cheol-seung (51, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 31) of the law firm The Firm, who is accused of posting on Facebook content that could identify the victim of the late Park Won-soon, former mayor of Seoul, in a sexual violence case.

According to the legal community on the 26th, the Women and Children Crime Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Won-ho) requested supplementary investigations on Jeong from the police on the 21st.

Although the prosecution has not disclosed the specific reasons for requesting supplementary investigations, citing that the case is still under investigation, it is interpreted as a request for additional investigations to strengthen insufficient evidence or incomplete parts of the investigation before prosecuting Jeong.

Article 197-2 (Request for Supplementary Investigation), newly established by amending the Criminal Procedure Act to adjust investigative authority between the prosecution and police, stipulates that prosecutors may request supplementary investigations from judicial police officers when necessary to decide whether to indict a transferred case.

Judicial police officers who receive a prosecutor's request for supplementary investigation must comply without delay unless there is a justifiable reason and report the results to the prosecutor. If the judicial police officer does not comply, the Prosecutor General or the chief prosecutor of each prosecution office may request the exclusion or disciplinary action of the judicial police officer from the competent authority.

Earlier, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency transferred Jeong to the prosecution on the 28th of last month on charges of violating the Sexual Violence Punishment Act (prohibition of revealing the victim's identity and privacy), the Information and Communications Network Act (defamation), the Personal Information Protection Act, and breach of official secrets.

In August last year, Jeong posted three posts on his Facebook titled "Facts related to the Park Won-soon case." These posts contained information about the victim's identity in the sexual violence case involving former Mayor Park, along with Jeong's claims such as "The facts of (former Mayor Park's sexual harassment) recognized by the National Human Rights Commission were based entirely on uncertain statements from the victim and witnesses without any objective evidence."

The victim's legal representative, lawyer Kim Jae-ryeon, filed a complaint against Jeong at the Seocho Police Station in Seoul last August for defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act. The Women and Youth Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which previously handled the investigation of the former mayor's case, took over the complaint and conducted an investigation before transferring it to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on the 28th of last month.

Additionally, the victim's side applied for a provisional injunction to the court, arguing that Jeong's posts contained information that could identify the victim and potentially defamed her. In September last year, the court ordered the deletion of some posts. Jeong, who opposed the court's deletion order, deleted the problematic posts just before the court accepted the victim's application for indirect compulsory enforcement (forcing debt fulfillment through psychological pressure via financial burden).

Jeong also sued former Dongyang University professor Jin Joong-kwon last August for posting on Facebook that "former Mayor Park sexually harassed," which was the reason for the lawsuit.

Jin shared an article on Facebook containing Jeong's claim that "No man in our country surpassed former Mayor Park's gender sensitivity," and criticized it by saying, "Most men, whether sensitive or not, do not commit sexual harassment," which Jeong took issue with.

Under criminal law, defamation of a deceased person is only established if the stated facts are false, and Jeong claimed that Jin's assertion that "former Mayor Park sexually harassed" was a false statement.

In response, Jin replied, "Pfft, make a joke." He added, "The lawsuit is funny, but the solemn tone in the voice when threatening to sue irritates my diaphragm," and criticized, "The more you do that, the more you tarnish the reputation of the deceased. It's time to regain reason."

Meanwhile, Jeong served as the legal representative for the bereaved family of former Mayor Park in an administrative lawsuit against the National Human Rights Commission, requesting the cancellation of the decision that Park committed sexual misconduct. However, he submitted a resignation to the court last month due to differences of opinion with the bereaved family.

The conflict reportedly arose from not obtaining the family's consent while narrowing the scope of the document submission order to the Human Rights Commission.

On the 21st of last month, Jeong announced on his Facebook, "I have resigned from all duties representing the bereaved family related to Mayor Park."

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