Kim Ho-jung Raises Issue with Press Photoline
Reportedly Considering Filing Complaint with Human Rights Commission
Singer Kim Ho-jung, who was arrested for attempting to cover up a hit-and-run while driving under the influence, is reportedly considering filing a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission against the police for mentioning the late Lee Seon-gyun simply because he stood on the photo line for the press. On the 28th, attorney Jo Nam-gwan, who is defending Kim Ho-jung, raised an issue based on Article 15 of the Police Public Relations Regulations, which includes a provision that information related to a suspect’s return home should not be disclosed. He also stated that they are even considering filing a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission regarding the 'whether there was an order from a higher authority' mentioned by the Seoul Gangnam Police Station investigation team.
Singer Kim Ho-jung, who is accused of 'hit-and-run while driving under the influence,' is leaving the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, heading to a transport vehicle after completing the pre-arrest suspect interrogation (warrant hearing) on the afternoon of the 24th. [Photo by Yonhap News]
On the 21st, Kim Ho-jung had a conflict during his third investigation as a suspect at the Gangnam Police Station. On that day, Kim Ho-jung avoided numerous reporters by entering through the underground parking lot when he appeared at the police station. Although the investigation ended around 5 p.m., about three hours after it began, he only returned home about six hours later. Kim Ho-jung and attorney Jo Nam-gwan requested to return home through the underground parking lot, just as when he arrived, citing Article 15 of the Police Public Relations Regulations, which states that information about the return of persons involved in a case should not be disclosed.
However, the police investigation team refused this request. At that time, Kim Ho-jung reportedly told his lawyer, "A private return home is my last switch. If this is turned off too, living has no meaning. It is my last pride, so I cannot back down," and added, "I feel so unfair. I will accept the punishment, but I feel like prey. Is it okay for the police to throw me out as prey like this?"
Eventually, Kim Ho-jung returned home through the front gate of the police station and left the scene quickly after saying to the reporters, "What need does a sinner have to speak? I have been investigated, and I will cooperate well with the remaining investigations." Since then, attorney Jo Nam-gwan has continuously criticized the police over Kim Ho-jung’s public return home. He told SBS, "Although there is various evidence supporting the suspicion of drinking, there is the presumption of innocence principle, and unless the suspect is a heinous criminal, the issue of whether a crime has been committed and the protection of the suspect’s human rights (portrait rights) should be viewed separately," mentioning the late Lee Seon-gyun case as well. He added, "If even minor (public relations) regulations are violated, painful precedents will be repeated, and eventually, we will inevitably regress to a barbaric era."
Will Kim Ho-jung’s sentence become harsher? "Please turn yourself in instead" - Call recording on manager’s phone
Singer Kim Ho-jung, who is accused of drunk hit-and-run, is leaving the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, after completing the pre-arrest detention hearing on the afternoon of the 24th. [Photo by Yonhap News]
Earlier, Kim Ho-jung is accused of fleeing the scene after colliding with a taxi on the opposite side of a road in Apgujeong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on the 9th. Three hours after the accident, his manager appeared on his behalf at the police wearing the clothes Kim Ho-jung had worn at the time of the accident. However, police investigations revealed that Kim Ho-jung was the driver, and he appeared at the police station for questioning at 4:30 p.m. the next day, 17 hours after the accident.
Kim Ho-jung’s agency representative apologized for being overprotective but absolutely denied the drinking allegation. However, numerous closed-circuit television (CCTV) recordings of the scene surfaced, and eventually, ten days after the incident, Kim Ho-jung admitted to drinking and bowed his head. Currently, Kim Ho-jung is under arrest after an arrest warrant was issued on the 24th for violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (hit-and-run causing injury, dangerous driving causing injury), the Road Traffic Act (failure to take measures after an accident), and aiding the escape of a criminal.
Meanwhile, the Chosun Ilbo reported that the police obtained a call recording from Kim Ho-jung’s manager’s phone containing a request to "turn yourself in instead." The recording reportedly includes Kim Ho-jung contacting his manager immediately after the accident, saying, "I drank and caused the accident," and "Please turn yourself in instead." Based on this recording, the police are considering changing the charges against Kim Ho-jung to instructing the escape of a criminal, which carries a heavier sentence than before.
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