Democratic Party Plans Legal Action Against Retired Prosecutor
The Democratic Party of Korea welcomed the removal of the lead prosecutor handling the Seongnam FC suspicion case by court order, calling it "a courageous decision by the judiciary."
Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung is heading to the courtroom on the 8th at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, to attend the continuation of the first trial related to the 'Daejang-dong breach of trust and Seongnam FC bribery' case. Photo by Jo Yong-jun
On the 11th, the Democratic Party's Countermeasures Committee Against Prosecutorial Dictatorship held a press conference at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, stating, "The presiding judge in the Seongnam FC suspicion case ordered the removal of Prosecutor Jeong Seung-won, and we welcome the judiciary's courageous decision as the last bastion of human rights," adding, "The prosecution's illegal actions and wrongful practices must be corrected."
On the same day, the 1st Criminal Division of the Suwon District Court Seongnam Branch (Chief Judge Heo Yong-gu) issued a removal order against Prosecutor Jeong during the continued trial of seven defendants related to the Seongnam FC suspicion case, including former executives of Doosan Construction and Naver, former Seongnam city officials, and a former Seongnam FC representative, who were indicted on charges of bribery and bribery offering. The court pointed out that a prosecutor from a different prosecution office, who is not within the jurisdiction, coming to court under a proxy order violates Article 5 of the Prosecution Office Act and Article 4 of the Prosecution Work Rules. Prosecutors participating in the trial protested the court's decision and collectively left the courtroom.
The Democratic Party's Countermeasures Committee Against Prosecutorial Dictatorship stated, "Prosecutor Jeong, instead of correcting himself after the judge's legitimate criticism, responded with sophistry and requested a recess. When the court firmly rejected this, all prosecutors exited the courtroom," adding, "This is a shameless backlash against the court's attempt to correct the prosecution's illegal behavior. Is the prosecution a privileged and sacred institution above the law?"
The committee claimed that Prosecutor Jeong's actions were illegal. They said, "Although Prosecutor Jeong belongs to the Busan District Prosecutors' Office, since around September last year, he has been appointed as a proxy prosecutor on a monthly basis, and during overlapping periods, he received a one-day proxy order as a Seongnam branch prosecutor of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office on trial days," pointing out, "According to Article 4 of the Prosecution Work Rules, proxy duties can only be performed among prosecutors belonging to the same Seongnam branch, but Prosecutor Jeong violated even this." They further emphasized, "Article 5 of the Prosecution Office Act prohibits prosecutors from engaging in trial-related litigation activities in courts outside their jurisdiction. Therefore, Prosecutor Jeong's involvement in trials at the Seongnam branch is a clear violation of the Prosecution Office Act."
They also explained that Prosecutor Jeong's litigation acts are invalid. The Democratic Party's Countermeasures Committee Against Prosecutorial Dictatorship stated, "It has been confirmed that Prosecutor Jeong, despite lacking legal authority, has been illegally involved in the trial of Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung held at the Seoul Central District Court," adding, "According to the court order, Prosecutor Jeong's litigation acts are invalid, so the litigation acts he performed in Lee's trial are also invalid."
The Democratic Party plans to take legal action against Prosecutor Jeong. The committee said, "We will file a complaint against Prosecutor Jeong and others whom the court has found to have acted unlawfully," explaining, "This will serve as an opportunity to correct the prosecution's illegal practices."
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