Lee Tae-han, the special prosecutor investigating the ballot shortage and other irregularities in the June 3 local elections, answers reporters' questions Monday as he arrives at the special prosecutor's temporary office in Seocho-gu, Seoul. [Yonhap]
Lee Tae-han, the special prosecutor investigating the ballot shortage and other irregularities in the June 3 local elections, answers reporters' questions Monday as he arrives at the special prosecutor's temporary office in Seocho-gu, Seoul. [Yonhap]

Lee Tae-han, the special prosecutor investigating the ballot shortage and other irregularities in the June 3 local elections, said Tuesday that the appointment request for deputy special prosecutors would take one to two additional days.

In a press notice, Lee said the selection of deputy special prosecutors had been slightly delayed and that the appointment request was expected to take about one to two more days.

Lee had originally planned to receive a list of recommended candidates from the Korean Bar Association by Tuesday morning, complete the final selection in the afternoon and send the list to the presidential office the same day. The schedule has since slipped.

Once Lee selects 10 candidates for deputy special prosecutor and submits the appointment request to President Lee Jae Myung, the president must appoint five of them within five days of receiving the request.

Lee plans to receive advance personnel from the Ministry of Justice and police this week and begin full-scale preparations for the office's launch. Arrangements to receive investigation records from the joint police-prosecution task force are also in their final stages.

Speaking to reporters after visiting the Seoul Bar Association in Seocho-gu, Lee said he had been notified of the total page count of the task force's records. He added that simply receiving and reviewing the records would be highly inefficient and time-consuming, and that he had asked the task force to organize and transfer the materials as interim investigation reports arranged by subject.

Lee also called on Seoul Bar Association President Jo Sun-yeol to help recruit special investigators, saying demand for such personnel was considerable. "I came to pay my respects upon taking office and to ask that capable investigators be recruited," he said.

Lee has been reporting to the temporary office at The Base Seocho Building in Seocho-gu, Seoul, since Monday, where he has been working on the selection of seconded staff. He is also reviewing relevant procedures and legal grounds after the National Assembly's special parliamentary investigation committee requested that the special prosecutor observe its on-site inspection of the Olympic Park vote-counting venue.

Earlier, Lee appointed Ha Jong-chan, a former administrative chief at the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors Office, as head of the investigation support unit, which will handle operational and administrative affairs for the investigative team.


yg@heraldcorp.com