The prosecution embarked on an investigation into writer and YouTuber Rhyu Si-min for allegedly spreading false information during his YouTube show.

According to the Seoul Western District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday, a civic group filed a complaint with the prosecution on Tuesday against the former lawmaker on several charges, including libel and obstruction of official duties.

The group -- its name roughly translatable to the committee on the measures for the people’s livelihood -- claimed some remarks made by Rhyu during his YouTube show “Alileo” regarding the corruption scandal surrounding the ex-Justice Minister Cho Kuk were against the general public sentiment and could disrupt the ongoing investigations into the scandal.

On Sep. 24, Rhyu took sides with Cho’s wife Chung Kyung-shim, saying the removal of Chung’s computer from her office was an appropriate action taken to preserve evidence. Chung, a professor at Dongyang University, is indicted on the charges of forging a document and running a shady private equity fund that her relatives invested in.

The civic group also berated Rhyu’s remarks slamming the prosecution’s probe into Cho’s family as a “coup d’etat” and “censorship.”

In a separate complaint, the civic organization also requested a libel investigation into the remarks made by a member of the panel who appeared on Rhyu’s show last Tuesday. The panelist -- a reporter -- had claimed prosecutors had leaked confidential information to a female KBS reporter because they liked her.

The civic group also said there was nothing to back up Rhyu’s claim during last Friday’s show that Chung’s asset manager had tried to contact the news broadcaster JTBC but had failed.


By Choi Ji-won (jwc@heraldcorp.com)