Morse Tan visiting an early voting station [Yonhap News file photo]

Morse Tan (Korean name: Dan Hyun-myung), a professor at Liberty University in the U.S. who is under investigation for defamation of President Lee Jae-myung, is scheduled to appear at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency today, the 24th, for questioning as a suspect.

Professor Tan is scheduled to undergo questioning regarding the defamation charges at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency at 10:00 a.m. today, the 24th.

Professor Tan is accused of making statements, including at a press conference held in the U.S. last year, suggesting that President Lee was involved in a murder case as a youth and was imprisoned in a juvenile detention center.

After Professor Tan failed to respond to requests to appear following his entry into the country on the 28th of last month, the police requested a departure ban from the Ministry of Justice, which subsequently imposed the ban until the 30th of this month.

Professor Tan filed an application for the suspension of the departure ban, but the court rejected it. His legal team has since filed an immediate appeal against the decision.

The police are currently investigating the charges following a request for reinvestigation by the prosecution. This session is understood to be the first in-person interrogation of Professor Tan as a suspect.

Following the conclusion of the investigation, Professor Tan's side plans to hold a press conference around 8:00 p.m. today, the 24th, in front of the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium, where protests are currently taking place to block the vote-counting station, to state their position regarding the investigation.

Professor Tan, who served as Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice at the State Department during the first Trump administration, has sparked controversy by promoting conspiracy theories, such as claims that "China interfered in South Korea's fraudulent elections."

Yonhap News