Before Confessing to Staged Attack, Candidate Discussed Unification? "I Will Leave Politics After the Election"

It has been reported that Jeong I-han, the former Reform Party candidate for Busan Mayor who was arrested on charges of staging a fake attack, discussed a candidate unification with the camp of People Power Party (PPP) Busan mayoral candidate Park Heong-joon just before confessing the crime to the police.

On May 8, candidate Jeong began a hunger strike to protest his exclusion from the televised debate for the Busan mayoral election.

Following this, candidate Park visited the hunger strike site on May 11 and 14, arranged by a Busan city council member affiliated with the PPP, identified as A, who had a close relationship with Jeong.

During these meetings, Park's side proposed, "If candidate Jeong cannot participate in the televised debate, we can hold a debate on a YouTube channel," and Jeong ended his hunger strike after seven days.

It is reported that three days later, on May 17, Jeong met with A and a key official from Park's campaign, identified as B, at a hotel in Busan for lunch, where he brought up the topic of candidate unification.

At the time, Jeong reportedly said, "If we lose the election due to a split in the conservative vote, there will inevitably be a political burden, so I am thinking of resigning," adding, "I hope candidate Park does well." He continued, "I will leave politics after the election. I am thinking of going to China to help with my father's business."

The following day, May 18, Jeong confessed to the police regarding the staged attack, and the police booked him on May 19.

On the 19th, the day he was booked by the police, Jeong announced he would hold an emergency press conference the next day, but suddenly canceled it, went into hiding for a time, and then resumed his election campaign.

It is known that Jeong told B at the time, "I could not resign as a candidate because the party opposed it."

In a media interview, B reportedly said, "At the time, it was disappointing and unfortunate, but looking back now, it is a huge relief that the candidate unification did not happen," adding, "I was bewildered to hear the news after the election that candidate Jeong's attack was a staged hoax."

Currently, regarding the allegations of Jeong's staged attack, the People Power Party is pressuring the Reform Party, demanding they reveal when they became aware of the staged incident and asserting that the responsibility for the nomination and vetting lies with the Reform Party.

On the other hand, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform Party, is pushing back, demanding an investigation into the background of why the camp of PPP candidate Park Heong-joon proposed unification to Jeong in the final stages of the election, leading to a battle of responsibility between the two sides.

Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Lee Da-in | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.