Manager Song Chang-jin in charge of the Kim Yeo-sa case resigns for personal reasons
Song Chang-jin, head of the Investigation Division 2 at the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (PCC), has recently reportedly tendered his resignation. If his resignation is accepted, the position of head of Investigation Division 2 will become vacant, following the vacancies in Divisions 1 and 3, leaving only two out of the seven chief prosecutors at the PCC in service.
According to legal circles on the 1st, Chief Prosecutor Song is said to have resigned this week due to personal reasons. Investigation Division 2 has been responsible for investigating allegations of bribery related to luxury handbags owned by Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon Seok-yeol. Recently, the division received some investigation materials on the luxury handbag case that had been requested from the prosecution. However, with Prosecutor Kim Sang-cheon of Investigation Division 2 retiring at the end of last month and Chief Prosecutor Song also leaving the PCC, the case is expected to be stalled for the time being.
The civic group ‘Citizens' Action for Judicial Justice’ has also filed a complaint accusing the prosecution investigation team and leadership, who decided not to indict in the luxury handbag case involving Mrs. Kim and the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation case, of dereliction of duty. This case has been assigned to Investigation Division 2. The PCC plans to reassign the luxury handbag case and others after conducting personnel changes for prosecutors and investigators early next week. Legal circles are increasingly concerned that the staffing shortages at the PCC could seriously disrupt ongoing investigations.
With Chief Prosecutor Song’s departure, only two chief prosecutors will remain at the PCC: Lee Dae-hwan, head of Investigation Division 4, who is investigating allegations of external pressure in the case of Marine Corps member Chae Sang-byeong’s death in the line of duty, and Cha Jeong-hyun, Investigation Planning Officer (Chief Prosecutor). Their reappointments were only decided on the 25th of last month, two days before their terms expired.
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