The Metropolitan Police Department of Washington D.C. has filed for an arrest warrant for former Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Yoon Chang-jung, a local news agency reported Sunday.

Yoon is alleged to have sexually harassed a Korean-American intern hired by the Korean embassy in the U.S. as support staff for President Park Geun-hye’s visit in May.

“It appears that the police department filed for an arrest warrant and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is reviewing the request,” an official at Korea’s Ministry of Justice was quoted as saying by Yonhap News. 

“As far as we know, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has not yet submitted the request to the courts, but we are trying to verify reports that the warrant has been issued.”

The arrest warrant is said to be for a misdemeanor. Under Washington D.C. law, a sexual misdemeanor is punishable by fines of less than $1,000 or a six-month jail term. The Metropolitan Police Department is reported to be planning to conclude the investigation and transfer the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office within the month.

By Choi He-suk
(cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)