'Moss Tan Faces Additional Travel Ban for Defaming President Lee... Prosecution Concludes "False Claims" (Comprehensive)'

Moss Tan (Korean name: Dan Hyunmyung), a Korean-American and former professor at Liberty University in the United States, has been indicted on charges of defaming President Lee Jaemyung. Following the indictment, the Ministry of Justice issued a travel ban on Tan, prohibiting him from leaving the country until August 15.

Moss Tan, former professor at Liberty University in the United States (Korean name Dan Hyunmyung). Yonhap News Agency

According to Yonhap News Agency on July 22, the Criminal Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (led by chief prosecutor Lee Juhee) indicted Tan without detention on July 16, on charges of defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act and criminal defamation under the Criminal Act.

Tan is accused of spreading false information during events such as a press conference held in Washington, DC, USA last year, claiming that "President Lee was involved in a group sexual assault and murder in his youth and was sent to a juvenile detention center."

The Cyber Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which received a complaint in July last year, dismissed the case in April this year, stating that since a foreign national committed the alleged crime abroad, the prosecution did not have jurisdiction. However, the prosecution requested a reinvestigation, citing that the victim, President Lee, resides in Korea, which led to the reopening of the investigation.

When Tan, who entered Korea in May, did not respond to a police summons, the police imposed a travel ban and called him in for a confidential investigation. On the first of this month, the case was handed over to the prosecution.

It is reported that the prosecution, upon reviewing juvenile detention records and related evidence, concluded that Tan's claims were false.

As a result of the indictment, the Ministry of Justice lifted the previous travel ban, which was in effect until July 31, and imposed a new travel ban until August 15 for the duration of the trial.

Tan’s legal representatives filed a lawsuit last month with the Seoul Administrative Court seeking to cancel the Ministry of Justice's exit ban order.

Serving as ambassador-at-large for international criminal justice in the first administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, Tan has been known as a prominent proponent of election fraud conspiracy theories. He also visited the "vote counting station blockade protest" site at Olympic Park in Songpa District, Seoul, insisting that "China intervened in election fraud in Korea."

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