What crimes will South Korea’s Serious Crime Investigation Agency investigate?

The SCIA is responsible for investigating corruption, business and economic crimes, defense procurement offenses, narcotics, national security crimes, cybercrimes and distortion of the law. The revised Criminal Procedure Act assigns these investigative areas to the agency while prosecutors retain the right to indict and maintain indictments.

Why could the SCIA and South Korean police clash over investigative jurisdiction?

The law leaves unclear what qualifies as a major crime and whether the SCIA must or may investigate petty offenses linked to the listed categories. Police have already handled those major crimes and have extensive personnel and infrastructure, making them unlikely to readily surrender investigative authority.

When will South Korea establish the committee responsible for resolving SCIA and police jurisdiction disputes?

The revised law requires an Investigation Jurisdiction Coordination Committee to clarify the agencies’ investigative boundaries, but the committee is scheduled to be created only after Feb. 5. Until then, the SCIA and police must rely on voluntary consultations to avoid confrontation.

New major crimes unit, police likely to face friction over unclear jurisdiction

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Summary

The Serious Crime Investigation Agency began operating in South Korea at the start of this month, creating potential friction with police over unclear investigative jurisdictions. A revision to the Criminal Procedure Act gives the SCIA authority over seven major crime categories while leaving prosecutors with indictment-related duties. A committee to coordinate investigative jurisdiction will not be established until after Feb. 5, leaving the agencies to rely on voluntary consultations.

Key Facts

The seven SCIA crime categories cover corruption, business and economic crimes, defense procurement, narcotics, national security, cybercrimes and distortion of the law.
The revised law does not clearly define what qualifies as a major crime or whether the SCIA may investigate petty crimes connected to one of the listed categories.
The police already investigate the listed major crimes and possess extensive personnel and infrastructure, potentially complicating the transfer of investigative authority.
Ko Beom-seok, commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, said police would closely monitor areas of concern and cooperate with the SCIA to minimize confusion.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 8, 2026 10:13 am KST

A visitor enters the headquarters of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency in Seoul, Sept. 22. Yonhap

The freshly launched agency dedicated to investigating "major crimes" may be headed for a turf war with the police due to a still unclear line between their jurisdictions, observers said Thursday.

The new Serious Crime Investigation Agency (SCIA) set sail at the start of this month under a recent revision to the Criminal Procedure Act that effectively dismantled the previous prosecution system, leaving the prosecution with only the right to indict and maintain indictments against criminals.

The right to investigate has been split between the SCIA and the police, with the SCIA tasked with investigating seven major crimes.

The revision defines such crimes as those related to corruption, business and economy, defense procurement, narcotics, national security, cybercrimes and distortion of the law, but there still exists ambiguity, such as what constitutes a "major" crime or should the SCIA be required, if not allowed, to investigate what may be considered petty crimes if related to corruption, narcotics or any other crimes stated in the law.

Also, the police, which have already been investigating all such major crimes and possess extensive personnel and infrastructure, will unlikely be willing to give up their right to investigate, the observers note.

Apparently anticipating such problems, the revised law requires the establishment of an Investigation Jurisdiction Coordination Committee that will clarify scopes of investigation for the two agencies.

The committee, however, is set to be created only after Feb. 5, leaving the SCIA and police to rely on voluntary consultations to prevent any possible confrontation at least for the next three months, according to the local observers.

Ko Beom-seok, commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, earlier said the police will keep a close watch "so that such areas of concern do not become a reality."

"We will closely cooperate with the SCIA to minimize confusion after the agency's launch," he has said.

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