South Korean prosecutors on Sunday said they believe President Park Geun-hye conspired in criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated government affairs and exploited her presidential ties to amass an illicit fortune — a damning revelation that may convince opposition parties to push for her impeachment.
FILE - In this Nov. 18 adidas nmd xr4 for sale , 2016, file photo, protesters wearing masks of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, left and Choi Soon-sil, Park's longtime friend adidas nmd city sock grey , in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean prosecutors on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016, said they believe Park conspired in criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated government affairs and exploited her presidential ties to amass an illicit fortune - a damning revelation that may convince opposition parties to push for her impeachment. The placards held by the protesters read: "Park Geun-hye should step down." (AP PhotoAhn Young-joon adidas nmd city sock white womens , File)
Prosecutors are planning to soon question Park, who has immunity but can be investigated, said Lee Young-ryeol, chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.
Prosecutors on Sunday formally charged Park's longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil adidas nmd city sock black for sale , on suspicion of interfering with state affairs and bullying companies into giving tens of millions of dollars to foundations and businesses she controlled.
In a televised news conference, Lee said that based on the evidence, "the president was involved as a conspirator in a considerable part of the criminal activities by suspects Choi Soon-sil, Ahn Jong-beom and Jung Ho-sung." He was referring to two presidential aides who also were formally charged Sunday for allegedly helping Choi.
"However, because of the president's impunity from prosecution stated in Article 84 of the constitution adidas nmd city sock for sale , we cannot indict the president. The special investigation headquarters will continue to push for an investigation of the president based on this judgment," Lee said.
Park's office had no immediate comment Sunday.
Park is facing growing calls to resign over the scandal critics say has undermined the country's democracy. Although emboldened by a wave of mass protests, opposition parties have so far refrained from seriously pushing for Park's impeachment over fears of triggering a backlash from conservative voters and negatively impacting next year's presidential election.
However, there are growing voices within the opposition saying that an impeachment attempt is inevitable because it's unlikely Park will resign