Justice minister takes on YouTubers who invaded his building

Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon responds to reporters' questions as he arrives at work in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi on Monday morning. [YONHAP]

Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon is pressing charges against a group of YouTubers who attempted to enter his apartment on Sunday afternoon, calling them "political gangsters" and accusing them of working with the liberal Democratic Party (DP).

A YouTube channel called Citizen Media The Tamsa TV said five of its members went to Han’s home in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, “so he might feel what journalists felt when they were set upon by police officers.” This was a reference to an attempted police raid on one of the channel’s reporters for allegedly tailing Han.

The five YouTubers claimed they were able to slip into Han’s apartment building as another resident was leaving its main door and made it to the hallway just outside Han's apartment.

They knocked on its door, but nobody answered. They then attempted to open it by entering different passcode combinations. They also looked at packages dropped off outside the apartment before leaving the building 90 seconds later.

The YouTubers livestreamed the event on their channel, and the name of Han’s apartment complex and unit number were clearly visible in the footage.

Although the YouTubers said they believed no one seemed to be home, Han’s wife and child were inside the apartment at the time, according to local media reports.

Han told reporters on his way to work to his office in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi on Monday morning that he filed a complaint with the police against the YouTubers later on Sunday on charges of trespassing and revenge tied to a previous criminal investigation. In Korea, committing a crime against someone who has provided evidence or reported a crime to the authorities is categorized as a revenge crime.

“Outlets like The Tamsa TV are acting like political gangsters these days," he said. "Are we supposed to just sit back and let them commit crimes in the name of news coverage?”

Sunday’s incident was the latest episode in an increasingly acrimonious relationship between Han and The Tamsa TV.

The YouTube channel is currently under investigation by police for tailing the minister on his way home from work for nearly a month, which Han reported in late September.

Tensions further escalated after the YouTube channel issued a report that Han indulged in a late-night drinking party at a luxury bar in July with President Yoon Suk-yeol and 30 lawyers from Kim & Chang, the country’s top law firm.

The report was cited by DP Rep. Kim Eui-kyeom in an accusation in late October that cozy relations between the government and private legal sector are undermining the country’s judicial system.

But police have concluded that the luxury party allegation was untrue.

In his comments to reporters Monday, Han accused the DP and The Tamsa TV of collaborating like politicians and hired thugs in the past, and asked why he wasn't given an apology over the party allegation that turned out to be false.

Members of the conservative People Power Party (PPP) denounced the incident on Monday and called on the DP to disavow the actions of the YouTubers.

PPP interim leader Chung Jin-suk said Monday that he does not view The Tamsa TV as a legitimate news outlet, but rather as “violent thugs,” while PPP emergency committee member Kim Jong-hyuk called on the DP to “end any association with the channel, if it exists.”

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]