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SEOUL, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- South Korean prosecutors have sought an arrest warrant for Kim Kyoung-soo, South Gyeongsang Province's governor, over his alleged involvement in an opinion-rigging scandal. Independent special prosecutors said Wednesday they are seeking an arrest warrant for Kim, who is accused of colluding in an online comment-rigging scheme, Yonhap reported.
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Prosecutors suspect Kim of giving an approval to a group of bloggers for using a software to manipulate online comments in news articles.
A group of bloggers led by a power blogger, nicknamed Druking, is accused of manipulating comments on news articles during last year's presidential election campaign to sway public opinion in favor of President Moon Jae-in.
The group developed a software called King Crab that enabled their members to log in and out of individual accounts and change their IP addresses to leave comments on online news stories, according to Korea Joongang Daily.
Prosecutors said Kim nodded his head when the blogger asked for his permission to use the software, Yonhap reported.
"It's too bad prosecutors went too far to (seek an arrest warrant)," Kim said in a Facebook post.
"I asked for an independent investigation by prosecutors when the scandal broke out. I cooperated with them because I wanted them to reveal the truths behind this scandal," he said. "Despite this, I will abide by legal procedures and hope the court makes a wise decision."
