Prosecutor General: "Gongsucheo Must Comply with Prosecutor's Request for Supplementary Investigation When No Prosecution Authority"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] It has been reported that the prosecution sent an opinion to the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (Hogeumgongjikja Beomjoe Susa Cheo, Gongsoocheo) stating that "for cases without prosecution rights, they must comply with the prosecution's supplementary investigation."

According to the legal community on the 17th, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office reportedly conveyed an opinion last month that "when Gongsoocheo transfers cases of high-ranking officials without prosecution rights to the prosecution, they must comply with the prosecution's requests for supplementary investigations, and there is no right to non-prosecution for such cases."

The prosecution's stance is that when Gongsoocheo transfers cases without prosecution rights to the prosecution, Gongsoocheo prosecutors are regarded as judicial police officers and supplementary investigations can be requested under the Criminal Procedure Act. Furthermore, since cases without prosecution rights do not have the right to non-prosecution, Gongsoocheo cannot decide on non-prosecution.

According to the Gongsoocheo Act, Gongsoocheo has prosecution rights only over crimes committed by prosecutors, judges, police officers of rank superintendent or higher, and their families, and can only investigate other high-ranking official cases.

However, Gongsoocheo argues that based on Article 27 of the Gongsoocheo Act, it holds the right to decide on non-prosecution for all high-ranking official crime cases.

Article 27 of the Gongsoocheo Act stipulates that "when the head decides on non-prosecution for high-ranking official crimes, related crime cases discovered during the investigation must be referred to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office."

They maintain that even cases without prosecution rights have the right to non-prosecution, distinguishing them from judicial police officers.

In this situation, the conflict between the two investigative agencies is inevitable as Gongsoocheo has designated the "unfair special hiring suspicion of dismissed teachers by Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education," a case without prosecution rights, as its first case.