42 Booked for Presidential Election Offenses in Gwangju... Assault, Poster Vandalism, and More

Police Refer 5 to Prosecution,
1 Person Detained

It has been confirmed that a total of 42 people have been booked on criminal charges in Gwangju for election-related offenses that occurred during the 21st presidential election process. Among them, some cases fall under the 'five key focus areas' classified as serious crimes under the Public Official Election Act, and the police are accelerating their investigation into these incidents.

On the 3rd, the 21st presidential election day, a voter is casting a ballot at the Yangjae 2-dong 2nd polling station set up at Seocho Post Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

According to the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency on June 5, there were a total of 39 cases of election-related offenses in this presidential election, involving 42 individuals. Of these, investigations into 4 cases (involving 5 people) have been completed and referred to the prosecution with recommendations for indictment, and among them, 1 person has been handed over while under arrest.

Mr. A, a man in his 60s who was referred to the prosecution under arrest, is accused of visiting a National Assembly member's local office twice and assaulting staff members. The police believe that Mr. A caused a disturbance after being ignored while trying to make demands by emphasizing his relationship with a particular politician. He has been charged with violating the Public Official Election Act (election-related violence) and with special assault.

Among the cases currently under investigation, the police have classified 13 individuals as being involved in election crimes that fall under the five key focus areas. By type, election-related violence accounts for the largest number, with 9 people (9 cases), followed by 3 people (1 case) for public officials' involvement in elections, and 1 person (1 case) for bribery.

In addition, 24 people (23 cases) are under investigation for damaging posters or banners, while 5 people (5 cases) are being investigated for offenses such as damaging or photographing ballots and exceeding noise standards with loudspeakers.

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