Former Liberty Korea Party lawmaker Jang Je-won was found dead.
According to police on the 1st, Jang was found dead around 11:40 p.m. on the 31st of last month at an officetel in Gangdong-gu. A suicide note was found at the scene, and so far, there are no indications of foul play.
Jang was accused of committing sexual violence (injury from quasi-rape) against an assistant identified as A when he was serving as the vice president of a university in Busan in November 2015.
Jang's side has consistently maintained that there was no basis for A's claims of sexual violence. The police summoned Jang for questioning on the 28th of last month, and he was reported to have denied the allegations at that time.
However, A's side revealed that they submitted a video to the police, which is presumed to have been filmed in a hotel room in Gangnam, Seoul, at the time of the incident. The video includes scenes of ▲ Jang calling A's name and instructing them to run errands ▲ attempting to commit acts of misconduct against A ▲ A responding in a sobbing voice.
According to Kim Jae-ryeon, a lawyer from the law firm Onsesang representing A, A realized that there had been acts of sexual assault and misconduct after waking up that morning and assessing the situation around them. Subsequently, thinking that they needed to leave evidence, A filmed the events in the hotel room with photos and videos while Jang was asleep.
Kim announced that A was scheduled to hold a press conference at 10 a.m. that day to explain the circumstances under which A filed a complaint against Jang, but it was canceled after news of Jang's death broke.
Jang served as a member of the National Assembly in the 18th, 20th, and 21st terms. He was considered a key figure in the pro-Yoon faction, having served as secretary general during President Yoon Suk-yeol's election period. He did not run in the recent 22nd general election.
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