Busan Education Office Administrative Director Sent to Prosecution on Charges of Illegal Election Campaigning

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Hwang Du-yeol] The investigation into a senior official of the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education accused of illegal election campaigning has been transferred to the prosecution.

On the 25th, the Busan Jungbu Police Station announced that it had sent the case to the prosecution on suspicion that Mr. A, the Director of the Administration Bureau of the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education, conducted illegal election campaigning to ensure the election of Ha Yun-su, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent, during the June 1 local elections.

According to the police, Mr. A shared links to news articles containing favorable poll results for Superintendent Ha and allegations unfavorable to former Superintendent Kim Seok-jun via SNS with acquaintances in April.

Under the current Public Official Election Act, local government officials are prohibited from engaging in election campaigning, and the announcement of voter support levels for political parties or candidates is also forbidden.

In May, the election camp of former Superintendent Kim reported Mr. A to the police for violating the Public Official Election Act by breaching the political neutrality obligation of public officials and influencing the election.

The poll results shared by Mr. A at the time were from an internet media outlet's survey, indicating that then-preliminary candidate Superintendent Ha was ahead of former Superintendent Kim within the margin of error.

Another article was related to allegations of sexual harassment against former Superintendent Kim, who counter-sued the accuser for false information disclosure and defamation; the police investigation is currently ongoing.

Mr. A stated, "I only sent the article links at the request of others during conversations with people I usually know on SNS, and I had no political intent," expressing his innocence.

The police concluded that Mr. A conducted illegal election campaigning with the purpose of electing Superintendent Ha and causing the defeat of former Superintendent Kim, proving a significant part of the charges.

Earlier, the Busan District Prosecutors' Office seized and searched Superintendent Ha's office and residence on the 22nd after detecting signs that the 'Forum Education Power,' founded by Superintendent Ha, was used as an election campaign organization for pre-election activities.

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