Reasons Why Frontline Officers Oppose the Police Investigation Organization Restructuring

Integrated Criminal Investigation Team for Homicide, Violent Crimes, and Traffic
Research Service Announcement Faces Continuous Criticism
"Even More Segmentation Is Needed, Integration
Current System Maintenance Is the Best Compromise"

Photo by Asia Economy DB

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] As the National Police Agency considers reorganizing its investigative units, opposition voices are growing among frontline police officers.

The National Police Agency recently announced a bid for a research project titled "Study on the Design of Metropolitan/Provincial Police Agency - Police Station Investigation Organization Model." The main focus is to redefine the criteria for organizing investigation teams at frontline police stations.

Currently, police investigative units are divided by crime types such as criminal, intelligence, forensic investigation, women and youth, and traffic investigation. The announcement includes plans to merge the economic, intelligence, and cyber investigation teams into an integrated investigation team, and to combine the criminal, violent crime, women and youth, and traffic teams into an integrated criminal investigation team.

Frontline police station chiefs have expressed dissatisfaction, arguing that reverting to the previous system just one year after some police stations divided their criminal or investigation departments into first and second divisions to establish investigative expertise is unreasonable. This year, the police reorganized divisions in about 50 police stations nationwide where the number of investigators per department exceeded 55.

A head of an investigation department at a frontline station said, "It is obvious that merging teams again when the investigative areas need to be further subdivided will increase the workload for each investigator. Maintaining the current system is at least a middle ground."

Another criminal investigation chief at a frontline station pointed out, "The investigative methods for women and youth cases or traffic cases are fundamentally different, so the idea of combining them is nothing but desk administration. From the complainant's perspective, wouldn't they trust police officers with expertise in specific investigative fields more?"

Other senior officers said, "Economic cases are often difficult and complex, requiring investigators with specialized expertise. Eliminating the distinctions among economic, intelligence, and cybercrime investigations will only slow down the investigative process."

In response, a police official stated, "The proposed organizational reorganization will be piloted only in some police stations, and the decision to expand it later will be made afterward."