Police on Wednesday formed a task force to investigate whether the Unification Church secretly provided financial support to Democratic Party lawmakers, immediately after receiving the case file from prosecutors.

The National Office of Investigation said it had obtained the records around 1:30 p.m. and decided that swift action was needed, given statutes of limitation and the case's political sensitivity.

The task force, established within the Special Investigation Division, began its review and initial investigative steps as soon as the file was assigned.

The probe stems from testimony the special counsel secured in August, in which former Unification Church executive Yun Young-ho reportedly claimed that two Democratic lawmakers received tens of millions of won each between 2018 and 2020.

Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo, one of the figures named in the testimony, denied the allegation on Wednesday, calling it entirely false in a social media post.

The task force will be led by Senior Superintendent Park Chang-hwan, who is returning to police headquarters on Thursday after completing his assignment with the special counsel team, and police say the investigation will proceed swiftly and in strict accordance with the law.