A joint prosecution-police investigation team has begun questioning former officials of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus as part of its investigation into the controversial religious group’s alleged ties to politicians.

The joint team summoned a former Shincheonji regional leader surnamed Choi, who authored an internal whistleblower report regarding alleged misconduct by another member of the group, to appear at its office on Monday morning.

Before entering the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office, Choi told reporters he estimated that a Shincheonji official had embezzled around eleven-point-three billion won and it was a serious matter.

In his report, Choi said a high-ranking Shincheonji official collected over 10 billion won from the organization’s local branches from September 2017 to July 2020 under the guise of public relations or legal expenses.

According to Choi, although the money was collected and submitted to superiors, there was no transparent explanation regarding how the funds were used.

Meanwhile, its purpose was recorded as “missionary expenses” with fabricated receipts from each branch, Choi said.

Separately, the joint investigation team called in a former Shincheonji branch leader and seminar instructor surnamed Cho for questioning related to accusations of irregularities and evidence listed in the whistleblower report.

The joint team is also looking into allegations that Shincheonji attempted to enroll its followers as members of the People Power Party to support Yoon Suk Yeol during the party’s presidential primary race in 2021.