Attorney Team of Jeong Jin-sang "Prosecution's Persuasion and Threats in Investigation Room... Strong Condemnation"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The legal team of Jeong Jin-sang, former Chief of Political Coordination Office at the Democratic Party representative office, who was indicted and detained on charges of accepting bribes from the Daejang-dong group, claimed that he was subjected to coercion and threats during the prosecution investigation.

On the 17th, Jeong’s legal team issued a statement saying, "We strongly condemn the unconstitutional infringement of the right to criminal defense guaranteed by the Constitution, including inappropriate interview-style investigations, coercion, attempts to drive a wedge between the defendant and his lawyers, and threats."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the legal team, on the morning of the 2nd of this month, when Jeong was summoned to the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 3 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kang Baek-shin) and went to the prosecutor’s office, a prosecutor who was not in charge of the investigation unilaterally conducted a casual conversation.

About seven minutes later, after the lawyer arrived and joined the meeting, the prosecutor allegedly conducted a coercive interview with Jeong, saying, "You should think about what is good for yourself. Please tell the truth. This meeting is also part of the oral investigation," according to the legal team’s claim.

The lawyer requested, "If this meeting is also an investigation, please record it in the minutes," after which the meeting was ended. Additionally, during the investigation, while the lawyer went to the restroom, the prosecutor in charge reportedly told Jeong, "Don’t trust your lawyer too much. Think only about yourself. Consider well whether your lawyer is really helping you. Do you live in a single cell? So it might be okay now, but when sentenced, you will be sent to a distant provincial prison and live with violent criminals in a mixed cell. Are you okay with that?" the legal team explained.

The legal team stated, "This is an unconstitutional and illegal investigation that undermines the foundation of the criminal defense attorney system guaranteed by the Constitution," and warned clearly, "If the prosecution’s illegal investigations are repeated, we will not remain passive and will take all measures guaranteed by law."

A prosecution official said, "The meeting was conducted with Jeong’s consent but was then stopped," and added, "There was absolutely no coercion or threats." The official continued, "We regret the malicious framing of all normal investigative procedures. Although we cannot disclose specific details, the relevant content is summarized in the investigation records."

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