Choi-gate: South Korean man rams excavator into building to kill president’s adviser

Authorities attempt to subdue the 45-year-old man who rammed a excavator into the Prosecutor's Office in South Korea. Image via YouTube

 1st November 2016 

A 45-YEAR-OLD man on Tuesday used an excavator to ram into a building where prosecutors questioned a woman at the core of the political scandal that has rocked the nation’s presidency, in a bid to “help her die”.

Local news reports said police detained the man after he used the construction vehicle to break through the building’s gate in a frenzied and emotional response to the woman’s statement that she “deserves death” for allegations of cronyism leveled against her.

Choi Soon-sil, who is a cult leader’s daughter with a decades-long connection to South Korean President Park Geun-hye, was arrested by prosecutors late Monday and is being examined to determine whether she had used her close ties to the premier to pull government favours from the shadows while amassing a fortune.

The Associated Press quoted police officer Han Jeung-sub as saying that the man, accused of running his big yellow excavator into the prosecution office near where Choi had been investigated, later told officials that “since Choi Soon-sil said she committed a sin that deserves death, I came here to help her die”.

Police later said the man was surnamed “Jeong” but did not reveal other details about him.

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It is not known if the woman was at the office at the time of the incident, which left a 60-year-old security guard injured and damaged the gate and other facilities, the AP reported.

SEE ALSO: South Korea: Prosecutors arrest president’s ‘shaman adviser’ amid political scandal

According to local news agency Yonhap, police said the man used the vehicle to plow through the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office at around 8:20am

The guard had attempted to stop the vehicle by firing a gas gun but was injured in the process and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

The report said the man had brought the excavator on a truck from Sunchang, a county in North Jeolla Province some 360 kilometers south of Seoul, at around 3am on Tuesday.

After arriving at the prosecutors’ office, the man unloaded the excavator nearby and rammed through the entrance gate.

Choi is accused of manipulating local firms into ‘donating’ about KRW50 billion (US$44 million) to two foundations that had supposedly been set up by her.

The close confidante of the president is also accused of swaying state affairs by gaining access to classified documents and benefiting personally through non-profit foundations, Reuters reported.

“Please, forgive me. I’m sorry. I committed a sin that deserves death,” Choi told reporters Monday on her way to meet with the prosecutors.

SEE ALSO: South Korea: Thousands call for president’s resignation over allegations of cronyism and ‘shaman’ influence

The scandal came to light last week when local cable TV network JTBC broke a story revealing evidence that Choi had received confidential documents and influenced government matters.

The scandal took on a strange twist when rumors swirled of Choi’s links to a religious cult, depicting her as a “shaman” who has been manipulating Park through supernatural means and even comparing her to Russian mystic Rasputin.

Last Tuesday, Park made a rare public apology, admitting that she had shown secret documents, including drafts of presidential speeches, to her confidant, who did not hold any official position.

Angered by the scandal, an estimated 30,000 people took part in a demonstration on Saturday that saw protesters march through the capital of Seoul.

Since late last week, Park has ordered over a dozen of her senior aides to resign amid an investigation into the scandal.

Public outcry over Choi has seen Park’s approval ratings take a tumble, hitting an all-time low of 21.1 percent on Thursday, according to local pollster Real Meter, while in another poll, over 40 percent of respondents said Park should resign or be impeached.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press