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On Nov. 18, the prosecutors who are investigating allegations of influence peddling by Choi Sun-sil announced that they had processed a criminal complaint filed against South Korean President Park Geun-hye. This means that Park’s legal status has changed from that of a witness in the ongoing investigation to that of a de facto suspect. The prosecutors also said they would “determine whether Park committed any illegal acts,” indicating that they mean to decide whether she had given orders for or been complicit in criminal activity without questioning her in person.

“Until today, the view of the team of investigators was that they needed to question President Park in person, but the remarks made by her attorney indicate that it’s no longer possible to question her today. Since questioning the president before charging Choi is no longer an option, we’ll decide whether she has committed by a crime by reviewing the testimony of witnesses and suspects and the physical evidence that we have acquired in various raids thus far,” said a source with the prosecutors’ special investigation department on Nov. 18.

“Park is an important witness in regard to the criminal behavior of the suspects who have been arrested, and criminal charges could present a problem for her,” the source added. The prosecutors intend for the official indictment against Choi Sun-sil to indicate whether Park gave instructions for Choi’s criminal activity or was involved in planning it.

The source made clear that the purpose of directly questioning Park was to straighten out the facts of the case: “We were trying to question President Park in person so that we could determine the truth of the case and to give her an opportunity to testify before deciding whether to charge the suspects.”

While Park acknowledged during her statement to the public on Oct. 25 that she had “received assistance from Choi Sun-sil on her speeches,” the prosecutors said that “in terms of evidentiary law, an acknowledgment is not the same as a confession, which is why we needed to question her in person.” This suggests that the prosecutors take seriously the charges that Park leaked classified government documents.

After Park’s lawyer suggested that she could meet with prosecutors next week, the Blue House and the prosecutors have been working on scheduling a meeting sometime between Nov. 23 and 25. A source at the Blue House said that Park cannot meet the prosecutors on Nov. 21 or 22 because of prior engagements.

By Kim Nam-il, staff reporter

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