Democratic Party(DP)-turned-independent Rep. Youn Kwan-suk appeared for questioning by the prosecution on Monday as a suspect in an illicit political fund scandal involving a number of party members.

The questioning of Youn on charges of violating the Political Parties Act comes three days after prosecutors grilled fellow DP-turned-independent Rep. Lee Sung-man on the same charges.

Youn is suspected of colluding with Lee and Kang Rae-gu, a former standing auditor of the Korea Water Resources Corporation, to deliver 60 million won, or 45-thousand U.S. dollars, to sitting lawmakers ahead of the 2021 party convention to secure the leadership victory of Song Young-gil.

The three-term lawmaker, who left the DP amid the allegations, flatly denied playing such a role.

Should Youn continue to deny the allegations, prosecutors may decide to seek an arrest warrant, which would require a parliamentary approval.