Investigative Office Transfers Case Involving Rep. Park Sun-won over Disclosing Alleged Whistleblower in Kim Seung-won Lobbying Scandal to Police

A complaint filed against Democratic Party Representative Park Sun-won for allegedly disclosing the identity of a public interest whistleblower—who raised suspicions that Democratic Party Representative Kim Seung-won lobbied for COVID-19 clinical trial approval—has been transferred to the police.

The Seoul Regional Investigation Office transferred the case in which the whistleblower, surnamed Cho, filed a complaint against Representative Park for violations of the Public Interest Whistleblower Protection Act and other charges to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on October 23.

The case had previously been assigned to the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division of the Seoul Regional Investigation Office.

It was learned that the Seoul Regional Investigation Office handed the case over to the police after determining that violations of the Public Interest Whistleblower Protection Act do not fall under the investigative jurisdiction of the Investigation Office Act.

During a Democratic Party Supreme Council meeting on September 11, Representative Park mentioned the personal details of whistleblower Cho and claimed that Cho exposed the allegations to extort money.

In response, Cho filed a complaint on October 7 against 13 individuals, including Representative Park and YouTubers, for violations of the Public Interest Whistleblower Protection Act and other charges, stating that after Representative Park revealed his identity as a whistleblower, media outlets and YouTube channels spread the information.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.