Kim Jae-ryun, a lawyer for a former secretary of the late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, explains the alleged sexual harassment case related to Park during a news conference at the offices of a women's right organization in Seoul on Monday. Photo by Yonhap/EPA-EFE
July 13 (UPI) -- A South Korean lawyer representing the woman who filed a complaint against Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon before his death on Thursday said her client was the target of sexual harassment for four years and that the mayor, her boss, continued to send her lewd text messages after she left the job.
Kim Jae-ryun, the woman's attorney, told reporters at a Monday press conference at the Korea Women's Hot Line in northern Seoul that the plaintiff, who remains unidentified, has submitted her mobile phone to provide forensic evidence to authorities of the alleged sex crimes, Yonhap and local newspaper Kyunghyang Shinmun reported.
Park, a former human rights lawyer, sent the woman an invitation to an online secret conversation as recently as Feb. 6, long after the victim had resigned from her position as the mayor's secretary.
The woman shared what the mayor had transmitted via text messaging platforms to her with acquaintances and journalists before she filed her complaint, Kim said.
Park allegedly sent the woman lewd messages and photos of him only wearing his undergarments, according to the attorney.
During her term of employment, Park also invited her to his bedroom, located in the mayor's office, and asked her to hold him, Kim said.
The lawyer said sexual misconduct continued at the mayor's office for four years. Park insisted the two take selfies, made inappropriate physical contact, and even tried to kiss the secretary's knee when she had a bruise, Kim said.
On Monday, the plaintiff did not appear before the media, but said in statement she has "deep regrets."
"Yes, I should have screamed when it first happened, cried out and reported it," the woman said in her message.
The presidential Blue House has declined to comment publicly on the allegations.
Park, 64, a member of the ruling Democratic Party, was a widely admired mayor who championed progressive causes in South Korea's largest city.
His body was found in a wooded area of Mount Bugak in the northern part of the city late Thursday hours after a search. He had been reported missing by his daughter, who told authorities he had left "words like a will" behind.
