A former secretary of Park Won-soon on Thursday raised further sexual harassment allegations against the late Seoul mayor, such as his refusal of her request to be transferred to another department, according to civic groups representing the woman.

In a statement, officials at the Korea Women's Hot Line and Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center said Park, the city's three-term mayor, had refused to approve the woman's repeated demands to be transferred to a different post.

Park, one of the country's most renowned political figures, was found dead on a Seoul mountain in the early hours of Friday after hundreds of police and rescue officials searched for him following a missing persons report.

His abrupt death came a day after his former secretary filled a complaint with the police. On Monday, civic groups and her attorney held a press conference where they said the public servant suffered unwanted physical contact and received inappropriate messages from Park for over four years.

"The victim had repeatedly requested to be transferred to another department every quarter since January 2016 but was frustrated every time before finally being able to work in a new position in July 2019," according to the groups' statement.

Also, the victim further accused Park of sexually harassing her in his office by having her check his blood pressure, though the victim had told him the task should be done by doctors or family members.

The former mayor even called the victim "sweetie" and made sexually harassing comments, the activists said.

Also, the secretary said she had to leave Park's underwear outside a bathroom attached to the mayor's office when he was taking a shower.

The Seoul metropolitan government, meanwhile, did not release any comment on the new allegations.

The city government earlier said it will establish a joint investigative team involving women rights and human rights groups, along with legal experts, for the case, "to guarantee fairness and objectivity." (Yonhap)