Clash over investigative power reform escalating

By Kang Seung-woo

The fight for hegemony between the prosecution and police amid the government's judiciary reform plans is turning into mud-slinging, as the two law enforcement agencies are putting each other's former and current chiefs on the investigative radar.

Won Kyung-hwan, the commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

President Moon Jae-in is seeking to curb the excessive power of prosecutors by giving independent investigative authority to the police, leading to the prosecution's massive resistance, including by its prosecutor-general.

According to the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, Wednesday, it is conducting an internal investigation into Won Kyung-hwan, the commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, over an allegation that he took bribes from a broker who was arrested for a 2011 corruption scandal over a temporary restaurant at a construction site.

The broker presented a petition in April, claiming he gave bribes to Won in 2009 when Won headed the Gangdong Police Station in eastern Seoul, according to the prosecution. The broker, surnamed Yoo, was convicted by the Supreme Court in 2012 of bribing top police officials and others to seek their help in winning catering service deals and he is now at Seoul Detention Center.

In the wake of the internal probe, the police are raising suspicions over the timing of the prosecution's investigation and the intention of the petition, believing the prosecution purposely leaked it to the media to smear them because Won had been acquitted of the allegations through the police's internal audit.

Won, seen as the No. 2 man in the police organization, denied the allegation, vowing to take legal action against Yoo for making a false accusation.

Former Prosecutor-General Kim Soo-nam

Korean National Police Agency Commissioner-General Min Gab-ryong backed up his subordinate.

“I am not sure if it was appropriate for the prosecution to make public an unconfirmed case,” he said in a press conference, Tuesday.

In addition, the internal investigation carries extra significance given that the scandal discouraged efforts toward the readjustment of prosecution-police investigative rights at the time, as former police chief Kang Hee-rak and other senior officers were involved in the case.

In response to the prosecution probe, the police are considering forcible investigations of a former prosecutor-general and a potential candidate for the top prosecutor job.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has booked four former and active senior prosecutors on charges of dereliction of duty, including former Prosecutor-General Kim Soo-nam and Hwang Cheol-kyu, chief prosecutor at the Busan High Prosecutors' Office.

According to the police, a former prosecutor allegedly forged a complaint in 2016, but he did not face disciplinary action for the illegal act. Regarding this, Lim Eun-jeong, a senior prosecutor of the Chungju District Prosecutors' Office, filed a complaint with the police against the four last month, claiming they overlooked the illegality.

“The police plan to carry out the investigation based on legal proceedings, and unless it makes progress, we are set to follow the procedures of a forcible investigation,” Min said, hinting that they are considering requesting an arrest warrant for them.

In a separate case, the police are set to summon several senior prosecutors as prosecutor Seo Ji-hyun recently accused three seniors of dereliction of duty and libel, which helped kickstart the #MeToo movement here.