On the 24th, Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon holds a special press conference regarding the right to resist at Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul. Yonhap News

Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church, who has been accused of orchestrating the riot at the Seoul Western District Court, held a press conference on the 24th to reiterate his denial of the charges.

Meeting with reporters in the parking lot of Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu that morning, Pastor Jeon spoke for about an hour, emphasizing the "right to resist" and condemning the investigation against him. He had previously spoken of exercising the "right to resist" and supported former President Yoon Suk-yeol at rallies, arguing that citizens have the right to resist the state's enforcement of laws.

Pastor Jeon claimed, "There is no hope in South Korea." He added, "I was acquitted by the Supreme Court during the Moon Jae-in administration and received compensation. I thought such a thing would never happen again, but seeing what President Lee Jae-myung is doing, it cannot be called normal."

He also expressed dissatisfaction, stating that some media outlets distorted his remarks when he appeared at the police station on the 18th. When asked for questions, he responded, "If you have questions, come to the 'YouKnowTV' (YouTube channel) broadcast room," and then disappeared, saying, "I will have a debate."

Pastor Jeon is accused of inciting the riot at the Western District Court on January 19th by using his faith for psychological manipulation (gaslighting) and by providing funds to his associates and conservative YouTubers.

The Security Investigation Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency summoned and investigated Pastor Jeon on the 18th and 21st. However, Pastor Jeon maintains that the Western District Court incident is unrelated to them.

The police re-summoned Shin Hye-sik, the head of the YouTube channel 'God's Hand' and an associate of Pastor Jeon, as a suspect in charges of inciting special building intrusion and obstruction of official duties.

Upon arriving at the police station, Shin claimed that the masterminds of this incident are suspected to be Seong Sam-young, a former administrative official at the Presidential Office, and Bae Ui-cheol, a lawyer for former President Yoon's legal team. He also stated that he would appear as a witness before the Special Prosecutor for Rebellion at 2 PM on the 25th to be investigated in relation to this matter.

Yonhap News