Lee Man-hee, the leader of the Shincheonji Church, is expected to learn on June 24 whether he will be imprisoned on charges of coercing church members to join the People Power Party.
The Seoul Central District Court announced on June 23 that Judge Kim Jin-man will conduct a warrant review for Lee at 2 p.m. on June 24. The court's decision on the warrant is likely to be announced later that evening.
Lee is accused of forcing church members to join the People Power Party to influence the party's presidential and parliamentary primaries from 2021 to 2024.
Article 42, Section 1 of the Political Parties Act states, "No one shall be forced to join or leave a political party against their free will."
Prosecutors suspect that Shincheonji encouraged its members to join the People Power Party under various initiatives, including a program called the "Pilates Project," leading to over 50,000 members reportedly signing up.
Following a rigorous investigation on June 4, prosecutors filed for an arrest warrant against Lee the day after questioning him as a suspect regarding the violation of the Political Parties Act.
Since January, prosecutors have conducted searches at the Shincheonji headquarters and the People Power Party's offices, seizing membership lists from both organizations.
In their ongoing analysis of the seized materials, prosecutors have reportedly obtained testimonies from former Shincheonji members indicating that directives to join the party were issued from Lee to church officials, including the general secretary, district leaders, and various church committees.
On June 17, prosecutors arrested three individuals, including former general secretary Ko Dong-an, who is considered the second-in-command of the church, on charges of violating the Political Parties Act and obstruction of business.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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