The police have decided not to refer Lee Junseok, Representative of the Reform New Party, to the prosecution on charges of disseminating false information under the Public Official Election Act in connection with allegations of proxy payment for opinion poll expenses.
On December 22, the Public Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced that it had decided not to refer Representative Lee to the prosecution on November 25 due to insufficient evidence regarding his alleged violation of the Public Official Election Act. However, the investigation is ongoing into allegations of proxy payment of opinion poll expenses under the Political Funds Act.
A police official stated, "For violations of the Public Official Election Act, the statute of limitations is only six months. Based on the evidence secured so far, we determined that it was insufficient to substantiate the charges, so we decided not to refer the case."
Representative Lee was accused of commissioning an opinion poll from Myung Taegyun during the 2021 People Power Party leadership election and having Bae, who was a preliminary candidate for Goryeong County Governor in North Gyeongsang Province, pay 6 million won in opinion poll expenses on his behalf.
At a policy debate in April, Representative Lee stated regarding the allegations, "I was not involved at all."
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