● Song Cheol-ho, former Sundae Headquarters, dismissed the arrest warrant... Braking in the investigation?

On the 29th of last month, the arrest warrant for former President of the Ulsan Mayor Song Chul-ho, Kim Mo, was dismissed in court. The reason was that it was not enough to see that the facts of blood were called to be bound by the evidence collected legally. A warrant for a used car dealer Jang Mo, who was charged with a bribe allegation, was also dismissed. As the prosecution's request for warrants was regarded as a sign of the'round 2'suspicion of the investigation into the Ulsan election, which will resume in earnest after the general election, it was interpreted that the investigation took a break.

Notable is the reason for the court's dismissal of the warrant. Usually, when the court does not give a warrant for arrest, it often refers to reasons such as the lack of evidence or fear of escape or the possibility of contention. It is considered that it is very unusual to discuss the legality of collecting evidence. A judge at the Seoul Central District Court said, "It may be a little different depending on the case, but it is certainly an uncommon case." At the same time, the controversy over the'separate investigation' related to the request for a arrest warrant for Kim's prior bribery was focused on the dismissal background.

● Kim's side, “The prosecutor's reciprocal and oppressive submission of smartphones… requesting a warrant for a change of speech” was sent

by Mayor Song. "I had a separate investigation." Immediately after dismissing the warrant, Kim claimed in a call to the reporter that "the prosecution received his smartphone in a lie and used it for separate investigations." Kim's argument is as follows.

Kim was investigated as a reference at the Ulsan Prosecutor's Office on the 4th and 5th of January, when the investigation into the election of Ulsan was in full swing. At the time, the prosecutor requested a random submission of a smartphone, but Kim did not. It was not subject to a search for seizure by warrant. One prosecutor said, "It can be converted from a reference status to a suspect status."


Still, when he refused to submit, Mr. Kim explained that the meeting started. When Mr. Kim protested that "there is personal information and all kinds of data on smartphones these days, but what to do if you look into something that is not relevant," the prosecutor at the Ulsan District Prosecutor's Office at the time said, "Evidence related to the alleged violation of the Public Election Law Otherwise, we cannot excerpt, nor can we use it to collect it." Eventually, Kim submitted a smartphone, and four months later, in May, he was arrested on charges of violating the Political Fund Act, not on violating the Public Official Election Act.

Kim's allegations support much of Kim's and Mayor's lawyer, Song Cheol-ho, that the prosecution is unreasonably investigating. In addition to the facts, not only was the suspicion that he was oppressed or pressured the referee, but also because he failed to make a specific charge in the court's first judgment, the warrant. Mayor Song Chul-ho and Mr. Kim's lawyer met reporters shortly after the last warrant review and refuted allegations against Kim. The specific facts, other than the reasons for the court's brief dismissal, were not known exactly, but of course, the court's rejection of the warrant strengthened the defense's claim.

● Prosecution "Investigation of the part of the accomplice, not a big deal" The criticism of the'typical separation' also

stated that the prosecution stated that "it is difficult to confirm specific facts or investigations." Still, he said, "Investigation of Mr. Kim is still in its infancy." He plans to conduct a complementary investigation in consideration of various circumstances and possibilities, including the results of the warrant review.

However, the prosecution actively rebutted "the investigation into the accomplice's part" to the lawyer's claim of'separate investigation' at the trial preparation date held on the 29th of last month. As Kim was designated as the key person in charge of the salary of Mayor Song Chul-ho's election camp, it was also explained that the situation of money transactions with civilians in the investigation process related to the Public Election Act could not be seen as a separate case. Nevertheless, criticism that the investigation has not made much progress since the prosecution of Mayor Song in January has been raised. In response to Mr. Kim's allegations of'evidence of illegal collection', Ulsan District Attorney, who was in charge of the investigation at the time, only responded, "There is no matter to confirm."

In this regard, Yang Hong-suk, a lawyer who is regarded as an expert in criminal law law, said, "If you submit a smartphone arbitrarily on the premise that you are limited to the public election law and have not received an additional warrant regarding the investigation of other crimes, it is an illegal collection evidence." Pointed out. In addition, the prosecution's explanation of the'criminal investigation' was only'the prosecution's word,' and the concept itself was unclear to what extent the'related investigation' could be extended. Another lawyer from the prosecution pointed out that "it seems difficult to avoid criticism of a separate investigation."

● Will Ulsan election intervention investigation drift?

The concerns and criticisms raised over the dismissal of the warrant are irrelevant to the course of the investigation and the conditions inside and outside. In November of last year, the prosecution was reassigned from the Ulsan District Prosecutor's Office to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office of Public Investigation Division 2 (Deputy Prosecutor Kim Tae-eun). It has been only a year and eight months since the Liberal Democratic Party filed a suspicion of'Haming investigation' and filed a complaint against Hwang Woon-ha, former Ulsan Regional Police Commissioner (now a member of the Democratic Party). In the meantime, criticism was raised as to why the incident that was left behind was suddenly brought to the central prosecutor's office, but the investigation was suddenly overwhelmed by the discovery of the workbook of the deputy mayor of Ulsan City during the seizure search. According to the investigation by the former Minister of Justice, the prosecution and the prosecution were aiming at'living power' in a situation where the tension between the Blue House and the passport has increased.


However, as the arrest warrant for the deputy mayor of Song Byeong-ki was dismissed for about a month after the investigation began,'Step' began to twist. In the absence of such achievements, Senator Hwang Un-ha and political figures who were appointed as suspects raised the voice of criticism, saying that the prosecution investigation was political. At the regular greetings since the appointment of Justice Minister Chu Mi-ae at the time, the second prosecutor of the Central Prosecutor Shin Bong-soo, who was in charge of the investigation into the election, was relegated to the province. Shortly after 13 people, including Mayor Song, were prosecuted for'one-time' reasons for the general election, the Ministry of Justice, unfortunately, came up with a policy of non-disclosure of the grounds for'protecting the honor and privacy of related persons'.

The situation in the future seems to be similar. Major suspects, including ex-president Hwang Un-ha, entered the National Assembly with gold badges. Big events such as the adjustment of investigative powers, the launch of airborne offices, and the prosecutor's greeting in July are also scheduled. From the prosecution's point of view, all kinds of reefs lined up and down.

Nevertheless, it seems difficult to avoid criticism that the investigative team has helped some of the difficult situation. After the investigation began, all warrants against major suspects including Vice Mayor Song Byeong-ki were dismissed. Key government officials such as Lim Jong-seok and Lee Kwang-cheol have not even been prosecuted. It also adds to the legality of collecting evidence and controversy over separate investigations. In the midst of repeated trials without a properly held trial, the case is moving away from public attention.

Prosecutors complain that the former deputy mayor Song Byung-ki and the Ulsan Police, including major suspects and referees, are not responding to attendance. It is said that in court, "I am concerned that it is not an organizational rejection." However, it was not an easy investigation from the beginning. It is common knowledge that the blade to live power must be sharper and more sophisticated. Even the voice of the prosecution's'dull blade' is suspicious of the investigation team's will.

●'Drifting' or'Struggling'? What the results will say

Even in the early days of the investigation, the whole country was bustling with the Ulsan incident. The suspicion of the investigation of'Ha Myung' was changed to the name of the suspicion of the election of the Blue House, and the suspicion broke out after a long day. Some said that if the suspicion turns out to be true, it will be a'breaking case of democracy'. As a result, the political interests were sharply mixed, so the workshop was fierce.

As the investigation is prolonged, the suspicion subsides, and the atmosphere that adds criticism toward the prosecution is clearly perceived. Nevertheless, it is clear that this case is a matter that should clearly reveal the facts through investigation and trial. Not for anyone, but for our entire society. The results will tell whether the prosecution is drifting on its own or struggling against an external reef.