48 riot police units to be deployed during inspection of local election ballots

SEOUL, Oct. 27 (Yonhap) -- Forty-eight riot police units will be deployed to maintain order during a special counsel team's inspection of ballots cast in the June 3 local elections, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) said Tuesday.

Special counsel Lee Tae-han's team is set to visit the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium in southeastern Seoul on Wednesday to examine 2.47 million ballots, surveillance camera footage and other material, as part of its probe into an unprecedented shortage of ballots during the local elections.

The gymnasium was used as a vote counting center and continues to house 2.47 million ballot papers cast in Seoul's southeastern Songpa Ward as protesters have blocked their removal amid calls for accountability and a rerun of the elections.

The SMPA said it will deploy 48 riot police units, 150 police officers tasked with dialogue and mediation, and 300 detectives and investigators to the site following a request from Lee's team to help maintain order during the inspection.

The total size of the police force is expected to be around 3,330, as a riot police unit typically consists of some 60 members.

"We plan to respond strictly, in accordance with the law and principles, to anyone who disrupts the special counsel's verification work and tasks necessary for the investigation, as well as to clearly illegal acts, such as assault, defamation or coercion against the police and public servants," the SMPA said in a notice to the press.

hague@yna.co.kr
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