Korean police will conduct initial investigations into American soldiers caught committing crimes in the nation before handing them over to U.S. authorities under a new guideline, the National Police Agency (NPA) said Sunday.
The NPA has made the police guideline on the Korea-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which governs the legal status of the U.S. service members stationed here, and distributed it to police stations nationwide.
The new manual was agreed upon in a meeting with military officials of the two countries, which discussed measures to prevent American soldiers from exercising power beyond their authority as defined in the SOFA, which deals with issues regarding 28,500 American soldiers stationed here, as a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
The latest measure comes as U.S. military police officers' handcuffing Korean civilians over illegal parking caused public outcry, prompting the top U.S. commander to make a public apology over the incident.
"We will continue to have consultations to prevent American policemen from exercising inappropriate authority or threatening the safety of Korean nationals," an NPA official said.
Under the new guideline, Korean authorities will conduct initial investigations into American soldiers caught committing crimes at the scene and then hand them over to their side.
In the past, Korean police were required to immediately send American soldiers to the U.S. authority upon their request, except in the case of murder or rape.
The new rule allows Korean police to take custody of American servicemen suspected of murder or rape and have more authority when investigating 12 types of major criminal cases.
American government representatives or lawyers will be allowed to observe the process of initial investigation to monitor whether it's accordingly conducted.
The new rule also made it clear that U.S. military police's authority off base will be exercised only in a limited circumstance in which American servicemen are put into danger. (Yonhap)