By Na Jeong-ju
Police questioned a secretary of National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae Tuesday in a widening investigation into an attack on the website of the National Election Commission (NEC) during the Oct. 26 by-elections.
The secretary, identified as Kim, drank with Grand National Party (GNP) lawmaker Choi Gu-sik’s former secretary on Oct. 25 when the latter allegedly told an Internet firm to launch the attack.
Kim offered to resign Monday as he was implicated in the cyber attack. Police said the grilling focused on revealing any possible involvement in the attack, which prevented voters from accessing the NEC’s website showing voter turnout as well as the location of polling stations on the election day.
If Kim’s involvement is confirmed, it will deal a severe blow to the already staggering conservative party, which has claimed that it had nothing to do with the crime. Park served as GNP chairman before taking office as Assembly speaker in June last year.
Opposition parties have alleged that the attack was premeditated to prevent young voters, who favor opposition candidates and usually vote in the morning before going to work, from checking their polling stations on the NEC website.
It is said that Choi’s former secretary, identified as Gong, 27, has maintained a close relationship with Kim. Both were from Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province.
Kim worked under Rep. Choi as a secretary before moving to Park’s office. Kim recommended Gong to Rep. Choi as his successor, according to police.
On the night of Oct. 25, Kim and Gong were joined by four acquaintances, including a lawyer and the owner of a beauty clinic.
Police said Gong’s telephone conversation records showed he talked about the attack with the head of the Internet firm, known as Kang, 25, around 11 p.m. while drinking with them.
Kim told investigators that he never heard about the attack at the place. Other acquaintances also denied the suspicions, police said.
Kang and two of his employees as well as secretary Gong were arrested last week for launching the website attack, for which thousands of zombie computers were reportedly used.
The NEC itself is under pressure to reveal key information on visitors to its website on the election day, amid growing suspicions of possible involvement of NEC employees in the attack. The NEC however has refused to do so, citing possible violations of the Information Security Law.
Gong recently quit as Rep. Choi’s secretary after police began the probe. Choi, a former reporter of the country’s largest daily Chosun Ilbo, was in charge of the GNP’s public relations during the by-elections.
Choi has denied his involvement in the attack, saying the 27-year-old secretary committed the crime on his own.