Police have questioned Choi Young-jung, a former Cheongju city councilor accused of child prostitution.
According to police on the 26th, Choi appeared at the Cheongju Cheongwon Police Station at around 2 p.m. that day as a suspect facing charges including statutory rape of a minor, production of sexual exploitation material, and solicitation of prostitution under the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth Against Sex Offenses. He was questioned for about four hours.
This marks the second time Choi has been summoned by police for questioning, following an initial session in May of this year. It is the first questioning since police conducted a search and seizure of the city council and his residence on the 15th of this month.
Police reportedly pressed Choi on whether he had demanded nude photos from the victim, a female middle school student. They also questioned him about the overall crimes, including whether there was any additional harm.
It is not known how Choi accounted for the charges that day. However, in his first questioning in May of this year, Choi denied the charges, saying, "I did not know she was a minor."
Choi is accused of having sexual relations with a middle school student on three occasions over a one-year period beginning in October 2024, in vehicles and motels, and of demanding that she take and send nude photos.
Choi also faces charges of engaging in sexual conversations, including proposing to the victim that he would pay more money if she brought her friends and older sister, showing her videos of himself having sexual relations with other women, and sending messages that appeared to suggest having sexual relations together with a woman of another nationality.
