Special Prosecutor Kwon Changyoung Accused of 'Legal Distortion' over Indictment of Na Kyungwon and Others

Jongbae Lee: "A Clear Unlawful Indictment and Suppression of the Opposition"

Case Previously Dismissed by Jo Eunseok's Special Investigation Team on Rebellion

Changyoung Kwon, the special prosecutor leading the Second Comprehensive Special Investigation Team, has been accused of legal distortion.

On August 18, former Seoul City Council member Jongbae Lee announced that he had filed a complaint with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office through the National Petition Portal earlier that morning, accusing Special Prosecutor Kwon of legal distortion for indicting People Power Party lawmakers Na Kyungwon, Kim Kimoon, Yoon Sanghyun, and Kwon Youngjin without detention on charges of obstruction of special official duties.

Changyoung Kwon, Special Prosecutor. Photo by Yonhap News

Previously, the Second Comprehensive Special Investigation Team indicted the four lawmakers on August 14 without detention, citing obstruction of special official duties, for forming a "human barrier" with supporters of former President Yoon Suk-yeol in front of the presidential residence on January 15 last year, preventing the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and the police from executing the arrest warrant for the former president. The team argued that the lawmakers did more than merely express opposition to the arrest and, together with many others at the scene, physically blocked entry into the residence, thereby realistically impeding the execution of the warrant. The indictment also referenced instances of "verbal abuse."

However, a prior investigation by Special Investigation Team for Rebellion led by Eunsuk Cho had concluded the case without indictment, stating that after reviewing evidentiary videos and materials, there was no confirmation that the lawmakers had directly committed violence or used abusive language toward investigators and that the criminal charges could not be substantiated. This led to claims from the opposition, arguing that the indictment by Kwon’s team was excessive.

Former council member Lee stated, "According to jurisprudence, threats in the crime of obstruction of official duties refer to acts of notifying harm with the intent to instill fear in the counterpart." He continued, "For the charges to be established, the lawmakers must have committed violence or threatened harm, but the special prosecutor's office has not presented any evidence of such violence or threats in their public statement released to the media."

He further argued, "Even according to the special prosecutor's own explanation, just acknowledging that there was some 'verbal abuse' is not sufficient to consider it a threat as defined in the crime of obstruction of official duties—that is, it did not rise to the level of instilling fear of harm."

He explained the reason for the complaint by stating, "Therefore, charging the lawmakers with obstruction of special official duties merely for verbal abuse constitutes a violation. It fits the case in which, 'if a special prosecutor knowingly applies the law to an ongoing criminal case involving lawmakers—without satisfying the required legal conditions—intentionally affecting the outcome of the investigation,’ the crime of legal distortion under Article 123-2 of the Criminal Act applies."

Jongbae Lee, former Seoul City Council member.

Former council member Lee also said, "The warrant executed on January 15 last year was issued by a court without jurisdiction, and there was controversy among academics and experts regarding its legality." He added, "Given that the warrant to execute the arrest of a president from the same party as the lawmakers belonged to the People Power Party, for National Assembly members as constitutional officeholders to protest the execution of what was believed to be an unlawful warrant is a legitimate act and is considered grounds for justification—removing illegality."

He argued, "Therefore, by not applying Article 20 of the Criminal Act regarding justifiable conduct, the special prosecutor's office knowingly failed to apply a law that should have been considered, intentionally affecting the outcome of the investigation and prosecution. This constitutes another instance of legal distortion as defined by Article 123-2 of the Criminal Act."

Lee also said, "It is common for members of the National Assembly to make collective statements to the public," adding, "At the time, there were concerns from academics and experts regarding the illegality of the warrant, and the special investigation team led by Eunsuk Cho, which investigated this case, also concluded that there was no evidence lawmakers directly used violence or abusive language against investigators and closed the case accordingly."

He criticized, "Despite the lack of an established crime, indicting as many as four National Assembly members, who are constitutional officeholders, is clearly an unlawful prosecution and a blatant act of oppression against the opposition party. The special investigation team led by Changyoung Kwon, appointed by the ruling bloc, has been reduced to a subcontractor for the Democratic Party, committing egregious acts of political oppression and prosecuting the opposition for political purposes. Thorough investigation and severe punishment of Prosecutor Kwon is required."

From the left, Kim Kimoon, Yoon Sanghyun, Na Kyungwon, and Kwon Youngjin of the People Power Party held a press conference on the 1st of last month at the National Assembly Communication Office, condemning the Kwanchangyeong Second Comprehensive Special Investigation Team, calling it a special investigation team suppressing the opposition party, and they are answering reporters' questions. Photo by Yonhap News

When Prosecutor Kwon indicted Na Kyungwon and others on August 14, Jeong Jeom-sik, floor leader of the People Power Party, posted on his Facebook page, "This is a sycophantic indictment intended to appease the government and the ruling party, who extended the investigation period from 90 days to an additional 90 days, making a total of 180 days. Fearing criticism of being an 'empty-handed' special prosecutor after such a lengthy investigation, the indictment was irresponsibly filed with a 'file first, worry later' attitude," he wrote.

Last week, the Second Comprehensive Special Investigation Team indicted 18 people including former President Yoon and Assemblywoman Na, and it is expected that by the investigation deadline of the 23rd, the team will indict 20 more individuals in connection with the allegations of changes to the Yangpyeong Expressway route, pressure related to the Deutsch Motors stock price manipulation case, and the suppression of investigations tied to the Unification Church overseas gambling case.

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