On August 20, the police conducted a search and seizure at the central party headquarters of the newly established Freedom and Innovation party. Reporters are seen covering the search process.

Around 12:30 p.m. on the 20th, the police began a full-scale search and seizure of the 'Freedom and Innovation' central party headquarters in the presence of legal counsel. The police warrant cited a violation of Article 89, Paragraph 2 of the Public Official Election Act, alleging that activities conducted by a civic group formerly led by Representative Hwang Kyo-ahn constituted illegal election support.

Earlier, around 11:00 a.m., police had attempted to enter the party headquarters, but a standoff ensued as party officials blocked access until their lawyers arrived. The search and seizure did not commence until the legal team joined the scene.

Police Perspective: "Activities by the Election Corruption Prevention Group constituted election support"

The police took issue with the activities of the 'Election Corruption Prevention Group' (Bu-bang-dae), a civic organization previously led by Representative Hwang. They determined that the rallies denouncing election fraud and the distribution of materials conducted by the group worked to the advantage of a specific political force, effectively amounting to campaign support by Representative Hwang.

Consequently, the police argue that these activities violate the Public Official Election Act's prohibition against the establishment and operation of "quasi-organizations" for election purposes.

Defense Rebuttal: "The Public Official Election Act violation is a forced interpretation"

However, Representative Hwang's side refuted the police's stance, arguing it holds no merit. Defense attorney Park Ju-hyun stated, "Representative Hwang resigned from his position as head of the prevention group before his presidential bid and has had no connection to the group's activities since," adding, "It is absurd to frame political civic movements as electioneering."

Furthermore, the legal team questioned the political intent of the investigation, asserting, "Article 89 of the Public Official Election Act is intended to regulate direct activities for the purpose of election campaigns; it is not meant to target general civic movements for prosecution."

Hwang Kyo-ahn’s Direct Protest

Representative Hwang Kyo-ahn strongly pushed back, characterizing the police action as "political oppression." On-site, he declared, "They are pressuring a political party through ruthless political investigations," and vowed, "I will risk my life for justice." He also raised questions about the motive behind the police investigation, claiming, "This is an unreasonable attempt to cover up investigations into election fraud."

Meanwhile, public criticism is spreading on social media, with comments such as, "On what grounds are they conducting a search and seizure? Because they tried to prevent election fraud?" and "The police no longer act as the police of our country."

The police plan to proceed with further investigations based on the analysis of the materials seized. On the other hand, the Freedom and Innovation party has defined this measure as an excessive investigation that undermines party democracy and has vowed a strong response.

This matter is expected to escalate into a legal battle, with the boundaries between civic group activities and election campaigning, as well as the scope of the application of the Public Official Election Act, emerging as key issues.