Photo: Prosecution Service

 

[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] Prosecutors investigating allegations of coercion of testimony in the Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance case have questioned attorney Seo Min-seok, who previously represented former Gyeonggi Province Vice Governor Lee Hwa-young.

According to the legal community on March 5, the Human Rights Inspection Task Force at the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office summoned Seo as a witness at around 9 a.m. to verify the facts surrounding the allegations. It was the first time Seo had been questioned by prosecutors in connection with the matter.

Seo served as Lee’s legal representative in 2023, when the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office was investigating allegations that Ssangbangwool Group sent funds to North Korea on behalf of Gyeonggi Province.

During the investigation, suspicions were raised that Seo may have persuaded or been involved in encouraging Lee to give statements unfavorable to Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung.

Seo has denied the allegations. On Feb. 26, he filed a defamation complaint against prosecutor Park Sang-yong, who had mentioned the suspicion during a YouTube broadcast.

The controversy began when Lee Hwa-young claimed in court in 2024 that prosecutors pressured him to change his testimony during questioning sessions where outside food and alcohol were allegedly brought in.

In response, the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office formed a separate task force to examine whether human rights violations occurred during the investigation.

Lee Hwa-young was indicted on charges including violations of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act related to the alleged remittances to North Korea and was sentenced to prison in the first trial. His case is currently under appeal.

 

 

 

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