Seoul: A special counsel team on Tuesday defended a raid it recently carried out against a church, asserting that it did not breach any laws, after U.S. President Donald Trump voiced concerns about church raids in South Korea.
According to Yonhap News Agency, on Monday, Trump informed reporters that he had heard about "very vicious raids on churches" in South Korea, just before his summit with President Lee Jae Myung in Washington. The comments seemed to partly refer to a raid conducted by special counsel Lee Myeong-hyeon's team against Yoido Full Gospel Church last month as part of its investigation into alleged government interference in a military probe into a Marine's death in 2023. Assistant special counsel Choung Min-young justified the raid, stating that his team had obtained a court-issued warrant.
"We explained the need for a search as we filed for the warrant, and there have been no legal violations in its execution," Choung stated during a briefing. The team suspects that Rev. Lee Young-hoon, a senior pastor at the church, had close ties to an initial suspect of the 2023 military probe, who was later cleared following the alleged government interference.
Meanwhile, the team plans to notify President Lee Jae Myung and the National Assembly later in the day of its resolution to extend its investigation period for an additional 30 days until Sept. 29. Under a special counsel bill passed in June, the investigation can proceed for up to 140 days, including its preparation period. The team also conveyed to the National Assembly the necessity to amend the special counsel law so that its investigation can continue for a more extended period.