Prosecutors Request Arrest Warrant for Lawmaker Jeong Jeong-sun... "Action Due to Non-Appearance"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The prosecution has requested an arrest warrant for Jeong Jeong-sun, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, who is accused of violating the Public Official Election Act and other charges.

On the 28th, the Cheongju District Prosecutors' Office announced that it had requested an arrest warrant for Representative Jeong on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act, the Political Funds Act, and the Personal Information Protection Act. The prosecution explained, "This measure was taken considering the statute of limitations for election-related crimes, as Representative Jeong repeatedly failed to comply with summons requests since mid-August."

Representative Jeong is under suspicion of accounting fraud during the April 15 general election. Earlier, Mr. A, who was the accounting manager of Jeong's election campaign, filed a complaint with the prosecution in June, alleging that Representative Jeong committed accounting fraud during the election. Jeong's side has so far refused the prosecution's summons, citing the regular session schedule of the National Assembly.

According to the National Assembly Act, a member of the National Assembly who is not caught in the act cannot be arrested or detained during a session. Due to parliamentary immunity, securing Representative Jeong's custody requires the National Assembly's consent for arrest. The consent procedure begins with the judge of the competent court submitting a request for consent to the government before issuing an arrest warrant. After the government accepts this, it requests the National Assembly's consent for the arrest. The National Assembly then reports this at the first plenary session after receipt and votes on it between 24 hours and 72 hours later.