Prosecution Indicts Pastor Choi Jaeyoung on Charges of 'Illegal Election Campaigning'

Violation of Public Official Election Act, Defamation, etc.

Pastor Choi Jaeyoung, who gave a luxury bag to First Lady Kim Geonhee, wife of President Yoon Seok-yeol, has been indicted on charges including illegal election campaigning.

Pastor Choi Jae-young is speaking at a related press conference held in front of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul, where the Prosecution Investigation Deliberation Committee was held on the 24th of last month.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the legal community on the 8th, the Criminal Division of the Yeoju Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Jeong Wooseok) indicted Pastor Choi without detention on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act and defamation.

Pastor Choi, a U.S. citizen who is prohibited from engaging in election campaigning, was indicted for campaigning on April 5th for Choi Jaegwan, a former local committee chairman who ran as a Democratic Party candidate in the Yeoju-Yangpyeong district.

After being introduced by a campaign staff member, he got on a campaign vehicle and made a support speech for about six minutes, saying, "In my view, the only candidate who can heal the national crisis and soothe the hearts of wounded citizens is Choi Jaegwan."

Earlier, in February at a lecture held in Yangpyeong County, Pastor Choi is accused of conducting illegal election campaigning for former Chairman Choi, and in March, at a lecture in Yeoju City, he is also charged with defaming People Power Party lawmaker Lee Cheolgyu by mentioning First Lady Kim. It is reported that during the Yeoju lecture, he made statements such as "Lawmaker Lee received special favors from the First Lady during the nomination process."

On the same day, the prosecution also indicted without detention six others, including former local committee chairman Choi, a Yeoju city council member, and a Yangpyeong county council member, who were investigated for violating the Public Official Election Act along with Pastor Choi.