Listening to Case Details and Issues from Both Prosecution and Police
Conclusion Expected on the 6th
The prosecution held a warrant review committee meeting to assess the appropriateness of requesting arrest warrants for Kim Seong-hoon, Deputy Director of the Presidential Security Service, and Lee Kwang-woo, Head of the Security Headquarters. The committee plans to reach a conclusion after listening to opinions on the case details and issues from the police and prosecution for one hour each, followed by a Q&A session.
On the 6th, the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office warrant review committee convened a meeting at the high prosecutors' office building from 2 p.m. to review whether the request for arrest warrants for the two individuals is justified. They are suspected of obstructing the execution of an arrest warrant against President Yoon Seok-yeol, making unfair personnel decisions, and deleting records related to burner phones.
The police's Emergency Martial Law Special Investigation Unit applied for a review to the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office on the 24th of last month after the court repeatedly dismissed the warrants against them. If it is judged that a prosecutor is dismissing a warrant application without just cause, the police can apply for a review to the high prosecutors' office. The high prosecutors' office accepts this application, holds a review committee meeting, and conducts an examination.
The review committee members are selected by randomly drawing nine members, excluding the chairperson, from a pool of 20 to 50 candidates from the legal and academic fields. In the actual meeting, ten people including the chairperson participate, and nine members vote, with decisions made by a majority vote.
The committee delivers the results on the day of the application and notifies both the prosecution and the police. According to the Ministry of Justice regulations, the committee's results are not binding but are to be respected by both parties. When the prosecution dismissed the arrest warrants for Deputy Director Kim and Head Lee on the 18th of last month, they explained that there was room for dispute regarding the charges. After reviewing materials secured through searches and seizures, there is a question of whether there was intent.
The prosecution also considers that, when comprehensively reviewing related testimonies and additional evidence such as seized mobile phones, there is little concern about evidence destruction. In particular, considering that Deputy Director Kim and others voluntarily appeared before investigative agencies and their current positions, it is reported that there is no concern about flight risk.
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