CultNEWS101 Articles: 1/13/2026
Patrick Ryan
Chosun: Pro-Government Kim Tae-hoon Heads Joint Religious-Political Collusion Investigation
47-member task force formed under President Lee's directive to probe Unification Church, Shincheonji ties to political figures amid bias concerns
"A joint investigation headquarters comprising prosecutors and police to probe allegations of collusion between the Unification Church, Shincheonji, and political figures was launched on the 6th. This comes a week after President Lee Jae-myung ordered the establishment of the task force during a Cabinet meeting on December 30 of last year. Kim Tae-hoon, chief of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office and known for his pro-government leanings, will lead the investigation. Legal circles have raised concerns, questioning whether the task force, formed under the president’s directive, can conduct a fair investigation into both ruling and opposition parties.
The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office announced, “The ‘Religious-Political Collusion Corruption Joint Investigation Headquarters’ was formed to swiftly and thoroughly uncover allegations that religious groups, including the Unification Church and Shincheonji, have intervened in politics and colluded with political figures.” The investigation headquarters is based at the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office and the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.
Under the headquarters, two investigation teams—one from the prosecution and one from the police—will operate separately. The prosecution team, comprising 25 members including prosecutors and investigators, and the police team, consisting of 22 members including superintendents, will form a 47-member task force. The prosecution team, led by Im Sam-bin, head of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office’s Public Investigation Planning Division, will handle legal aspects such as reviewing cases referred by police, indictments, and warrant examinations. The police team, led by Ham Young-wook, head of the investigation bureau at the Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency, will be responsible for investigations and case referrals.
The task force plans to investigate allegations that the Unification Church lobbied political figures with money and Shincheonji’s alleged attempts to recruit members of the People Power Party, which were previously under investigation by the National Police Agency’s National Office of Investigation. A Supreme Prosecutors’ Office official stated, 'All suspicions related to religious-political collusion, including financial favors by the Unification Church and Shincheonji to political and government figures and election interference through party membership, are under investigation.'"
Probe into financial lobbying, political interference, and influence between the two religious groups.
"A joint investigation team of prosecutors and police probing allegations of collusion between politics and religion announced on the 7th that it would investigate not only the Unification Church but also Shincheonji. The investigation aims to clarify suspicions of financial lobbying targeting political circles and the enrollment of followers as party members by both religious groups. The authorities are also expected to examine the relationship between the Unification Church and Shincheonji, both considered representative emerging religious groups in South Korea."
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