Turbulence in the Prosecution... Senior Prosecutors Resign One After Another, Extending the 'Time of Reflection' to Junior Prosecutors

With impeachment pressure from the opposition and the reduction of prosecutorial powers causing major investigations to halt, and fears of the prosecution being reduced to a mere indictment office, internal turmoil is shaking the prosecution. Signs of the prosecution’s weakening have led several senior officials to submit their resignations, and even young prosecutors are leaving due to pay cuts and an uncertain future, accelerating a ‘prosecutorial exodus.’

Recently, Gu Sang-yeop, Director of the Legal Affairs Office at the Ministry of Justice and a prosecutor general (51, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 30), Jang Dae-gyu, head of the Financial Investigation Division 2 at Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office who indicted former Kakao Chairman Kim Beom-su (45, class 37), and Han Yeon-gyu, former head of the Criminal Division 3 at Jeonju District Prosecutors’ Office investigating former President Moon Jae-in’s case (48, class 37), all submitted their resignations.

On the 5th of last month, the opposition party unilaterally passed the impeachment motion against Choi Jae-hae, the head of the Board of Audit and Inspection, Lee Chang-soo, the chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and two other prosecutors at the National Assembly plenary session. Yonhap News

Song Young-in, deputy chief prosecutor of the Criminal Division 2 at Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors’ Office (47, class 35), who led the so-called ‘Jung Yoo-jung case’ involving the brutal murder of a woman he met through a tutoring application, and Son Jeong-hyun, head of the Criminal Division 1 at Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office (48, class 34), who prosecuted SK Discovery (formerly SK Chemical) and its then CEO Hong Ji-ho for false and exaggerated advertising claiming that humidifier disinfectants were low toxicity, also resigned.

Kim Jeong-jin, head of the Criminal Division 1 at Cheongju District Prosecutors’ Office (53, class 32), and Jo Ju-yeon, deputy chief prosecutor at Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office (53, class 33), who handled the ‘Deutsche Motors stock manipulation suspicion case’ and indicted former Deutsche Motors Chairman Kwon Oh-soo, also decided to leave the prosecution.

Some analysts suggest that the opposition’s frequent impeachment of prosecutors amid a parliament dominated by the opposition and President Yoon Seok-yeol’s December 3 emergency martial law incident have greatly influenced the ‘prosecutor defections.’ There are also claims that pro-Yoon (pro-Yoon Seok-yeol) and pro-Han (pro-Han Dong-hoon) faction prosecutors are the first to leave the organization.

A former prosecutor general turned lawyer said, “When a fire breaks out in a hotteok shop, what meaning do factions have? The prosecution is facing a total crisis,” adding, “Factions like pro-Yoon or pro-Han only matter when the organization holds strong power.” He continued, “Currently, important investigations are with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and the police, and cases at major district prosecutors’ offices are at a standstill. With the organization’s status diminished and the workload not decreasing, combined with worries about livelihood, a mass exodus has begun.”

The wave of resignations among junior prosecutors continues. According to Law Times reporting, Song Yoon-sang (41, 2nd Bar Exam), who investigated the ‘Incheon Michuhol-gu Construction King’ lease fraud case, submitted his resignation. Besides Song, junior and mid-level prosecutors are either submitting resignations or contemplating leaving.

Lower-ranked junior prosecutors are resigning due to difficulties adapting to work and excessive workloads. Mid-level prosecutors often receive attractive recruitment offers. Especially with the complete elimination of special activity expenses and specific task allowances, the reduced pay has increased financial burdens, leading more to choose retirement for practical reasons.

Woo Bin, Law Times Reporter

※This article is based on content supplied by Law Times.