Jang Kyung-tae says he submitted multiple pieces of evidence to police in false-accusation complaint

Independent lawmaker Jang Kyung-tae said Wednesday that he had appeared before police as the complainant in a false-accusation case and submitted multiple pieces of evidence.

Speaking at a press conference at the National Assembly that day, Jang said the evidence "clearly shows that what actually happened was dating violence."

Jang faces charges of making inappropriate physical contact with a staff member from another lawmaker's office at a restaurant in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, in October 2024.

Jang released KakaoTalk chat logs that included the complainant and questioned why an absence caused by dating violence had been recorded as a hangover. "Isn't it the case that, in trying to frame this as a false accusation, even the actual dating-violence account ended up contradicting itself?" he said.

He said the messages showed those present at the gathering were expressing concern for him. "There was no groping. I had no authority over the personnel of another lawmaker's office, and I transferred the same 27,800 won ($20) in membership fees as every other attendee — it was an entirely equal gathering," he said.

Jang said the evidence released Wednesday was "no more than a portion of the materials" he had secured, and said he would "do everything in his power to reveal the truth by releasing the relevant materials one by one."

The case has been forwarded to prosecutors without detention on charges of groping and secondary victimization. Jang has filed a counter-complaint against the staff member on charges of false accusation. On Tuesday, he underwent about nine hours of questioning as the complainant at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's anti-corruption investigation unit.