Former 3-term lawmaker Chang Je-won found dead amid probe into sexual assault allegations
Former People Power Party lawmaker Chang Je-won / Yonhap
Former three-term lawmaker Chang Je-won, who was under investigation for sexual assault allegations, was found dead in eastern Seoul, according to police Tuesday.
Chang, the former lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party, was found dead at his personal office in Gangdong Ward at around 11:40 p.m. Monday.
A police officer said there were "no signs of foul play" at the scene and his death was likely by suicide, though an investigation is under way into the exact circumstances.
A note presumably written by Chang was found at the scene.
Chang had been under investigation over allegations he sexually assaulted his former secretary in 2015, when he served as a vice president of a university in Busan.
He denied the allegations, including during police questioning last Friday.
On Monday, however, the former secretary submitted evidence to the police and disclosed a video she said was taken inside a hotel room in Gangnam Ward on the day of the alleged sexual assault, in which a man appearing to be Chang can be seen asking her to bring water and forcing himself upon her.
The former secretary had been scheduled to hold a press conference Tuesday morning to explain the reasons for her complaint with the police.
With his death, police are likely to close the investigation into the sexual assault allegations without filing charges.
Chang was considered a close confidant of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, serving as his chief of staff when Yoon was president-elect. (Yonhap)