The process to seek the National Assembly’s consent to detain main-opposition People Power Party lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong over alleged illicit political funds tied to the Unification Church has started. 

The Seoul Central District Court on Friday confirmed it received a request for parliamentary consent to detain Kweon, a sitting lawmaker shielded by arrest immunity.

This comes after a pre-trial detention warrant request was filed by special counsel Min Joong-ki’s team on Thursday. 

The motion must secure a majority in a secret ballot on the National Assembly floor before a judge can hold a detention hearing.

With the Democratic Party holding a majority, passage is considered likely.

Kweon is accused of accepting 100 million won or some 72-thousand US dollars in illicit political funds from Unification Church figures in early 2022, along with receiving cash from church leader Han Hak-ja and leaking probe information to aid the entity.