Morse Tan, a Liberty University professor in the United States who is under investigation for spreading false information including claims that President Lee Jae-myung was sent to a juvenile detention center as a child, has filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn an exit ban imposed on him.
According to legal sources on Tuesday, Tan filed the lawsuit against the government at the Seoul Administrative Court the previous day to nullify the exit and entry ban, along with a request for a stay of execution. The case has been assigned to Senior Judge Wi Ji-hyun of Administrative Division 1.
Earlier, police had requested the Ministry of Justice the previous day to impose an exit ban on Tan, citing concerns about flight risk after he failed to comply with summons. An exit ban refers to a measure prohibiting foreign nationals from leaving the country.
Tan, who served as Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice at the State Department during the first Trump administration, faces charges including defamation for spreading false claims that President Lee was involved in a murder case as a youth and was incarcerated in a juvenile detention facility. He has also stirred controversy with conspiracy theories such as claims that "China intervened in South Korea's election fraud."
Tan had been residing in the United States, making investigation difficult, but entered Korea on May 28, ahead of the June 3 local elections, stating he intended to monitor and verify alleged election fraud in Korea. Police went directly to the airport to request his appearance on May 29. However, Tan did not comply and instead submitted a written explanation for his non-appearance and a request to recuse the investigator.
Police, who believe the defamation charges against Tan are substantiated, plan to summon him again soon. Park Jung-bo, commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, said at a regular press briefing, "We will conduct the necessary investigation according to established procedures."
