According to reports from the Central Daily News in South Korea and the Korean Associated Press on the 28th, the police in South Korea announced that
Former Seonggi-do Assembly member Choi Hu was found dead in a mountainous area in Pyeongtaek City. Choi Hu was under investigation by the prosecutor’s office for involvement in the case involving Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Jiseok.
The Seonggi-do Police Department stated that Choi Hu left home on the afternoon of July 27, and his family reported his disappearance that evening. The police discovered his body in a deserted mountain area in Pyeongtaek City’s Cheondong Mountain at around 3 AM on the 28th. The cause of death is still awaiting further autopsy confirmation. The police initially preliminarily determined it as suicide, but no suicide note was found at the scene. A police official mentioned, “Due to ongoing investigations, we cannot disclose more details.”
Choi Hu had previously served as an Assembly member of the Seonggi-do region. On June 1, 2022, during the local elections in South Korea, he was nominated as a candidate for Mayor of Pyeongtaek by the National Democratic Party (NDP). He was seen as a representative figure of the “Yoon faction” (supporters of Yoon Suk Yeol). This nomination sparked internal debate within the party, leading to accusations of “interference in the party election” against the couple, and the prosecutor’s office has since initiated an investigation into this matter.
A special prosecutorial team in charge of investigating the case related to Kim Jiseok, the wife of Yoon Suk Yeol, responded that they had not summoned or contacted Choi Hu, nor did they plan to do so soon. However, several South Korean media outlets pointed out that Choi Hu was considered an important clue in the case.