A court has rejected arrest warrants for two men in their twenties accused of assaulting police officers during a protest at the Jamsil polling station.
According to reports from Yonhap News and others, the Seoul Eastern District Court's Judge Yang Hwan-seung conducted a pre-arrest interrogation for the two suspects, who face charges of obstructing official duties and causing injury. He stated that there was no risk of evidence destruction or flight, leading to the decision not to issue the warrants.
The suspects are accused of assaulting a police officer from the Songpa Police Station on June 5, when ballot boxes from the local elections were being transported from the Jamsil 7-dong No. 2 polling station to the Olympic Park Handball Stadium counting center.
Police investigations revealed that the suspects blocked the officer's movement after the ballot box transfer was completed, claiming that "Election Commission staff were disguised as police officers" before attacking him.
Authorities identified three suspects involved in the incident, but only applied for arrest warrants for the two deemed to have played a significant role in the assault on June 29.
The defense acknowledged some of the charges but argued against the necessity of arrest, stating, "While we admit to using physical force against the police officer, the request for an arrest warrant is excessive." They further contended that the injury aspect of the charges was difficult to accept, noting that the two-week treatment period indicated in the police officer's medical report did not constitute a serious injury.
Additionally, police are investigating a woman in her twenties who posted videos of the incident on social media, suspecting her of violating the Information and Communications Network Act.
Meanwhile, the Korea Sports Council has reiterated calls for a swift resolution and normalization of the situation at the Olympic Park Handball Stadium, which has been under blockade for 27 days.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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