Fired official denies sexual misconduct

SEOUL (AP):A South Korean presidential spokesman, who was dismissed for what officials called a "disgraceful incident" while accompanying President Park Geun-hye on a visit to the United States, has denied reports that he sexually molested a Korean-American woman during the trip.

Park's office said she fired her chief spokesman, Yoon Chang-jung, last week because unspecified actions he committed marred South Korea's national dignity.

A spokesman for the Washington Metropolitan Police said they are investigating a report of misdemeanour sexual abuse but he could not comment further.

A police report obtained by The Associated Press said a woman told police that a man "grabbed her buttocks without her permission" last Tuesday night at the W Washington DC hotel.

56-Y-O SUSPECT

The police report did not describe the circumstances or identify the accuser or suspect, except to say that the suspect is 56. Yoon is 56.

South Korean media reports said the woman is a Korean-American in her early 20s who worked for Yoon as part of an internship organised by the South Korean Embassy in the United States.

Yesterday, Yoon denied the allegations, telling a news conference that he only tapped her once on the waist, not the buttocks, as part of gesture to cheer her up after drinking alcohol with her and their driver for about 30 minutes.