On the 6th, members of the ruling party from the National Assembly’s Legislative and Judiciary Committee released a statement urging the Chief of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) to “immediately cease the illegal investigation and resign.” The statement highlighted that conducting an investigation into treason while probing abuse of authority is a clear violation of legal boundaries, as the charge of abuse of authority against a sitting president cannot be prosecuted under the constitution, and the CIO does not have the jurisdiction to investigate treason.
They criticized the CIO for allegedly obtaining an arrest warrant through “judge shopping,” which has drawn significant public criticism, and they described the request for a warrant from the Seoul Western District Prosecutor’s Office instead of the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office as a deceitful act to cover up illegal activities.
The committee members also pointed out that the CIO’s recent decision to delegate the execution of arrest warrants to the police is an acknowledgment of the investigation’s illegality and noted that the CIO has no authority to instruct the police as it lacks investigative powers.
Furthermore, the statement criticized the CIO for planning to extend the validity of the presidential arrest warrant, arguing that issuing a new illegal warrant would only amplify the unlawfulness. They called for the CIO to immediately halt the illegal investigations and arrest warrant requests, transfer the case to the police according to the law, and for the Chief of the CIO to resign due to the resulting chaos from illegal investigations.