'School Violence Cover-Up Allegation': Special Prosecutor Raids Three Locations Including Seongnam Office of Education

[Financial News] The Special Prosecutor Team led by Min Joong-ki has launched a compulsory investigation into the 'school violence cover-up' allegations.
On the morning of the 20th, the Special Prosecutor Team announced that it was conducting searches and seizures at the Department of Student Guidance and the Department of Elementary Education within the Seongnam Office of Education, as well as the Education Department of the Gapyeong Office of Education.
Previously, the daughter of Seunghee Kim, former Protocol Secretary of the Office of the President of South Korea, who was a third-grade student at an elementary school in Seongnam, assaulted a second-grade female student from the same school multiple times in the restroom. The victim suffered injuries, including corneal damage. The school responded by suspending the former secretary's daughter as an emergency disciplinary measure.
Although the School Violence Countermeasures Committee was convened following the victim's report, the committee imposed only a 10-day suspension and a class change. The forced transfer requested by the victim's side was not granted.
After the school violence incident occurred in July 2023, it was revealed that Kim Keon Hee had a phone call lasting over eight minutes with the Vice Minister of Education, which sparked suspicions. The Special Prosecutor Team is expected to investigate whether the Ministry of Education, after receiving Kim Keon Hee's call, actually instructed local education offices to downplay the school violence case.
Seunghee Kim resigned during a National Assembly of the Republic of Korea audit that year after the allegations surfaced. It was reported that she completed a graduate journalism program with Kim Keon Hee in 2009. During the 20th presidential election, she also served as head of public relations planning for Yoon Suk Yeol's campaign.
Earlier, the Special Prosecutor Team obtained related materials, including recordings from the School Violence Countermeasures Committee, from the Seongnam Office of Education as part of its investigation. The team plans to determine whether Kim Keon Hee was directly involved.

theknight@fnnews.com Jung Kyung-soo Reporter