South Korea’s special prosecutor investigating former first lady Kim Keon Hee on Thursday requested a pre-trial detention warrant for People Power Party lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong.

The move came just a day after Kweon underwent more than 13 hours of questioning, with prosecutors citing risk of evidence destruction as he denied all allegations.
 
The former PPP floor leader, who is shielded by parliamentary immunity, must first face a National Assembly vote on a motion to allow his detention before a court hearing can be held. 

Kweon is accused of accepting 100 million won in illicit political funds from Unification Church figures in early 2022, along with receiving cash from church leader Han Hak-ja and leaking probe information to aid the entity.

Investigators are also examining whether Kweon benefited from the religious group’s organizational support in elections in exchange for favors on personnel and policy matters.

Arriving for questioning Wednesday, Kweon declared himself “innocent and unafraid,” rejecting the special counsel’s claims as baseless.