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ANALYSIS Jeju missing person cases raise doubts over police readiness for sole investigative power
Police conduct a forensic examination after finding the body of Jang Mi-ran, who had been missing for several months, at a palm farm on Jeju Island, Monday. Yonhap
By Park Ung
As prosecutors face stripping of supplementary investigation powers, ruling bloc moves to contain fallout
Distrust of police is deepening over the premature closure of multiple missing person cases on Jeju Island, raising questions about the force's readiness to take full control of criminal investigations.
President Lee Jae Myung ordered the creation of a government body in charge of measures to reform the police on Tuesday, a day after police found the body of Jang Mi-ran, a 37-year-old woman missing for months.
The case sparked controversy after it emerged that a police officer had closed it without confirming her whereabouts. Police said Tuesday they had removed all four officers in the chain of command at Jeju Seobu Police Station from their duties pending an investigation.
The Jeju Provincial Police said Tuesday an autopsy on the body found at a palm farm on Jeju Island confirmed it was Jang. They said its position when found suggested she died by hanging.
“The recent breakdown in police discipline and irresponsibility in public safety matters have become serious problems,” Lee said during a Cabinet meeting, adding that police are likely to wield more power than any other state institution and that the public concern is significant.
President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
Distrust in police investigations surged in July after investigators found that the father of Jang Yoon-gi, a suspect in the murder of a high school student in Jeonnam-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City, destroyed evidence in the case. The father is an active-duty police officer.
Doubts about the fairness of police investigations deepened after the officer who handled the Jang Mi-ran case was accused of closing another missing person case in a similar manner in July. The man in his 60s was found dead Saturday, 51 days after he was reported missing.
The cases have raised concerns over how police will be held accountable once they gain sole authority over criminal investigations.
Last month, the National Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), passed a revision to the Criminal Procedure Act stripping prosecutors of their supplementary investigation powers. The revision leaves police solely responsible for routine criminal cases, from opening an investigation to its closure and follow-up inquiries.
Prosecutors, who will be limited to filing and maintaining indictments, will lose the authority to directly supplement police investigations. If a prosecutor finds that a case referred needs more investigation, the prosecutor must ask police to do it.
The revision has drawn criticism that it could slow the handling of cases and lead to shoddy investigations in matters demanding a high degree of expertise. Concerns have also been raised that police operating without prosecutorial oversight could close a case on their own.
The recent controversy has renewed pushback from opposition parties against the planned abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers.
“The push to destroy the justice system, including the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers, must stop immediately. Otherwise, the government and the ruling party will be no different from an accomplice to further police case burials, fabrications and cover-ups,” Jeong Jeom-sig, floor leader of the main opposition People Power Party, said Tuesday.
“Public confidence in the police is shaking. Once the prosecution service disappears in October, case burials like this will only intensify,” Jeong added.
The DPK moved to contain the fallout. Its floor leader, Han Byung-do, said Tuesday the party would pursue a comprehensive overhaul of the police, adding that it would also take full responsibility for building an investigative system the public can trust.
“As police authority grows, so too must investigative capacity, accountability and transparency, along with democratic control over the process,” Han said. “We will not let this case spread into public anxiety and distrust toward the new criminal justice system.”