Suspect in 'Lee Jae-myung Assault' Defense Statement: "At This Rate, the Country's Economy Will Collapse"

Kim Mo (67), who was arrested on the 4th on charges of assault with a deadly weapon (attempted murder) against Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, reportedly left a note before the crime stating, "At this rate, no matter who wins the general election, the country's economy will collapse."

At the time of the crime, Kim had an 8-page document containing this content in his shirt pocket, which was confiscated by the police.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Prior to his arrest, Kim appeared at the suspect interrogation (warrant hearing) and, when asked by reporters why he attacked Lee, said, "Please refer to the 8-page 'explanation letter' I submitted to the police."

The original title of the explanation letter Kim referred to was confirmed to be "Words Left Behind."

A Busan Police Agency official stated at a briefing on the 5th, "The content reported by a certain media outlet does not completely match Kim's 'explanation letter' (Words Left Behind), but some parts are similar in intent."

One media outlet reported that Kim's explanation letter included content such as, "During the previous administration, the real estate market collapsed and humiliating diplomacy toward North Korea devastated the economy. Although the Yoon administration took office, with Lee Jae-myung emerging as party leader, the massive opposition Democratic Party has become fully committed to saving Lee Jae-myung."

It is presumed that specific politicians' names were mentioned in Kim's "Words Left Behind," but the police said they cannot disclose this information as the investigation is ongoing.

The police are carefully considering whether to disclose Kim's identity before transferring the case and stated that they have not yet confirmed any history of mental illness.

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