CIO's First Indictment: Former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Acquitted in 'Bribery Case'

Supreme Court Upholds Acquittal Verdict
Supreme Court: "No Misunderstanding of Legal Principles Regarding Bribery and Offering a Bribe"

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office for Investigation of High-Ranking Officials (Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, CIO) has seen its first indictment since its establishment end in an acquittal, as former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim Hyungjun (Judicial Research and Training Institute, 25th class) was found not guilty.

According to the legal community on May 13, the Supreme Court's Third Division (Presiding Justice Eom Sangpil) on April 24 upheld the previous court rulings that acquitted both former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim, who had been indicted on bribery charges, and attorney Park, who had been indicted on charges of offering a bribe.

The Supreme Court stated, "There was no error in the lower court's judgment that would constitute a violation of the rules of logic and experience or that would exceed the limits of free evaluation of evidence, nor was there any misunderstanding of the legal principles regarding the establishment of bribery or offering a bribe that would have affected the outcome of the judgment."

Former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim was brought to trial in March 2022 on charges that, during his tenure as head of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office's Joint Securities Crime Investigation Unit (Joint Investigation Unit) in 2015 and 2016, he provided favorable treatment in the investigation of attorney Park's alleged violations of the Capital Markets Act, and after his transfer, received entertainment worth 935,000 won on two occasions and accepted valuables worth about 10 million won. The CIO also indicted attorney Park on charges of offering a bribe.

The CIO exercised its right to indict for the first time since its launch in January 2021 in the case against former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim. However, both the first and second trials resulted in acquittals. The appellate court noted that, given the personal relationship established while attorney Park worked at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, it could not rule out the possibility that Park had simply lent money to Kim, and that the relationship was not one-sided in terms of providing entertainment such as buying drinks for each other.

Furthermore, regarding the alleged favorable treatment in attorney Park's case, the court found it difficult to conclude that there had been any improper solicitation, as the prosecutor in charge testified that he had not received any instructions from former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim. Although the CIO appealed, the Supreme Court found no error in the appellate court's judgment and dismissed the appeal.

Meanwhile, this case was first raised as a suspicion during the investigation into the so-called "sponsor prosecutor" case, for which former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim was convicted, but he was cleared of charges at the time. In 2019, a complaint was filed with the police, and the prosecution subsequently transferred the case to the CIO in accordance with the CIO Act.