Disagreement Between Supreme Prosecutors' Office and Central District Prosecutors' Office Over Post-Report on 'Mrs. Kim Investigation'

President Lee Won-seok Received Report on Mrs. Kim's Investigation 10 Hours After Start... "Deeply Considering"
Central District Prosecutors' Office: "Investigation on Luxury Bag Receipt Is Fluid, Could Not Report in Advance"

Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok was reportedly not informed in advance by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (SCDPO) about the plan to conduct a face-to-face investigation of First Lady Kim Geon-hee at a third location, and only received a report after the investigation was nearly completed, according to information on the 21st.

Regarding the background and exact timing of this delayed report, the SCDPO and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office showed subtle differences in their positions.

Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok is making a statement on the Democratic Party's impeachment motion against prosecutors at the press room of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 2nd. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

On that day, the SCDPO announced that the Criminal Division 1 (Chief Prosecutor Kim Seung-ho) and Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 (Chief Prosecutor Choi Jae-hoon), which are investigating allegations of First Lady Kim’s receipt of luxury handbags and her involvement in the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation case, summoned her as a suspect to a government security facility under the jurisdiction of the SCDPO for a face-to-face investigation.

An official from the Central District Prosecutors' Office explained, "We requested her appearance regarding the complaint cases against her, and after consultation, for reasons of security and safety, she was summoned to a government security facility within the jurisdiction of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office for a face-to-face investigation."

However, it was confirmed that the SCDPO did not report this investigation plan involving First Lady Kim to Prosecutor General Lee or any senior officials at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in advance.

A Supreme Prosecutors' Office official stated, "Neither Prosecutor General Lee nor any senior officials at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office were informed beforehand, and the SCDPO only notified us after the investigation was nearing completion. The Prosecutor General is deeply considering this situation."

It is known that the report on the investigation of First Lady Kim was made directly by Lee Chang-soo, head of the SCDPO, to Prosecutor General Lee via phone close to midnight the previous day.

The investigation of First Lady Kim began around 1:30 p.m. the previous day and concluded around 1:20 a.m. the following morning, past midnight.

Among the two cases for which First Lady Kim was accused, the investigation related to Deutsche Motors stock manipulation was conducted first, and the investigation concerning the luxury handbag receipt case reportedly began around 9 to 10 p.m.

The SCDPO’s position is that they did not report the investigation of First Lady Kim to the Prosecutor General in advance because the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation case investigation was definitely scheduled, but the investigation regarding the luxury handbag receipt case was uncertain. Specifically, since the Deutsche Motors case was excluded from the Prosecutor General’s supervisory authority by then-Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae in 2020, it was not originally a matter to be reported to the Prosecutor General. As for the luxury handbag receipt case, since it was unclear whether an investigation would be conducted, they did not report it.

Each of the two cases for which First Lady Kim was accused had separate legal counsel. While the counsel for the Deutsche Motors case had agreed to the face-to-face investigation, the counsel for the luxury handbag receipt case consistently argued that under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, there was no provision to punish First Lady Kim, making the prosecution’s summons inappropriate. Therefore, it was uncertain whether the investigation would proceed the previous day.

However, on the day of the investigation, the prosecution persuaded First Lady Kim to proceed with the investigation regarding the luxury handbag receipt allegations as well. Accordingly, since Lee Chang-soo, head of the SCDPO, reported this to the Prosecutor General during the investigation, the SCDPO’s position is that the Prosecutor General was not bypassed.

On the other hand, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office expressed clear displeasure.

The use of the term "after-the-fact notification" by a Supreme Prosecutors' Office official is interpreted to mean that the SCDPO unilaterally informed them only when the investigation was nearly finished.

Before the investigation of First Lady Kim, there was a prevailing view around the prosecution that it would be difficult to summon and investigate the First Lady multiple times, so it was expected that both cases would be investigated simultaneously during a single session.

Therefore, if it was decided to investigate First Lady Kim at a third location, it was natural that the investigation related to the luxury handbag receipt case would also proceed, and thus the Prosecutor General should have been informed in advance, according to the perspective of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and Prosecutor General Lee.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office also holds that the timing when Prosecutor General Lee was informed was not when the investigation of the luxury handbag receipt case began, but rather when the investigation was already well underway or nearly completed.

The investigation of First Lady Kim reportedly concluded around 1:20 a.m. that day. It is unclear whether this time refers to when she finished the investigation and left or when she began reviewing the investigation records, but if it is the former, it supports the Supreme Prosecutors' Office’s claim that the report was made when the investigation was practically over around midnight.

Previously, Prosecutor General Lee emphasized an investigation based on principles regarding the investigation of First Lady Kim. This can be seen as a policy indicating that she should be summoned and investigated by the prosecution. It is also reported that the SCDPO investigation team shared the same view on the necessity of a prosecution summons investigation.

However, an official from the SCDPO said, "A summons investigation is not something that can be done based on one side’s position alone, and since she is the sitting First Lady, considerations of security and safety had to be taken into account."