Overview
- A Seoul court approved an arrest warrant for Lee Man-hee after prosecutors argued he could destroy evidence, moving the case from inquiry to detention steps.
- Investigators accuse Lee of directing a campaign that pressured roughly 50,000 to 56,000 Shincheonji followers to join the conservative People Power Party between 2021 and 2024 to influence party primaries.
- Prosecutors charge Lee with obstruction of business and violations of the Political Parties Act, which bars religious groups from political meddling.
- Lee, in his mid-90s, appeared at the warrant hearing aided by a cane and has denied the allegations while the Shincheonji Church called the claims unfounded.
- The case expands a wider probe into ties between religious groups and conservative politicians, a line of inquiry that has already led to actions against Unification Church figures and allies of former President Yoon and may affect future political and legal scrutiny of the People Power Party.