Jeon Ju-hye, Chairwoman of the Gangdong-gu A District Party Chapter of the People Power Party. [Photo = Yonhap News]

Former lawmaker Jeon Ju-hye (Chairwoman of the Gangdong-gu A District Party Chapter of the People Power Party) was reported to the police on the 21st on suspicion of illegally collecting funds from local council members and using them for regional office operating expenses.

The Free Korea Patriotic Group (Representative Oh Sang-jong) filed a complaint against former lawmaker Jeon and former secretary Mr. A for violating the Political Funds Act, alleging suspicions of "illegal receipt of political funds" without going through legitimate donation procedures.

According to the complaint, former lawmaker Jeon is suspected of collecting a certain amount of money from local council members and using it for the operating expenses of the district party chapter chairman's office. Article 3 of the Political Funds Act stipulates that money provided for political activities must go through legal procedures such as established support groups or party membership fees.

The complainant stated, "The funds collected from local council members were effectively the expenses incurred for former lawmaker Jeon's political activities (regional engagement and promotion)," and judged this as "illegal receipt" in violation of procedures.

Regarding former secretary Mr. A, who was also reported, it is alleged that Mr. A received salary from a law firm but actually supported former lawmaker Jeon's political activities.

The complaint stated, "By having the law firm cover Mr. A's salary, the firm fundamentally contributed to former lawmaker Jeon's crime of illegal receipt of political funds," and identified Mr. A as an accomplice in the crime.

In addition, the complainant argued that this case is a serious illegal act that goes beyond mere operational cost sharing.

In response, Hanmi Ilbo attempted to contact the Gangdong-gu A District Party Chapter office for confirmation, but the Seoul City Chapter stated, "There is no separate office for Gangdong-gu A, and we cannot provide personal phone numbers."

By Reporter Lim Yo-hee