The Democratic Party of Korea ramped up its attacks on independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon on October 12 regarding allegations of false credentials involving his daughter. In response, Han accused the party of distorting facts about a matter that has already been cleared of wrongdoing.
Jo Gye-won, a spokesperson for the party, reiterated calls for Han to address the allegations during a briefing. He stated, "In November 2022, the police requested international cooperation from the U.S. regarding these allegations, but the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office rejected it. At that time, Han was the Minister of Justice. While he pressures others for answers, he remains silent himself."
Jeon Eun-soo, the party's floor spokesperson, added, "The police conducted an investigation for one year and eight months but did not apply for a search warrant even once. The only inquiry related to the allegations was a single written investigation of Han's spouse, contrasting sharply with the four and two face-to-face interviews conducted with the two complainants."
Jeon emphasized that all decisions were made while Han was serving as Minister of Justice, stating, "Given that the case involves the minister's child, the investigation should have been conducted more rigorously. The public is questioning whether this was a lenient investigation without sufficient inquiry into related parties."
Kang Deuk-gu, who heads the Democratic Research Institute, also noted that after the allegations surfaced, the police sought international judicial cooperation with the U.S., but prosecutors rejected the request, pointing out that Han was the Justice Minister at the time. He questioned whether Han had been informed of the rejection regarding the investigation into his daughter.
As the Democratic Party's offensive continued, Han took to Facebook to assert that the case had already been cleared by the police's investigation review committee. He stated, "The police have concluded that there is no wrongdoing, but the Democratic Party is distorting the facts," and warned of legal action against those spreading false information.
Han criticized the situation, saying, "This is an attempt at political revenge for my criticism of Kim Seung-won, the nominee for Minister of Justice, and for pointing out the delayed investigation into the DMZ landmine attack, using unrelated allegations about my children."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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