[Invest&Law] 'Serious Accident' Expert Park Kidong, Former Daegu Chief Prosecutor, Starts New Career as Attorney

Former Public Security Expert Oversaw Major Industrial Accident and Election Cases Nationwide
Criminal Justice System and Policy Specialist
Nicknamed the “Grim Reaper of the CIO”
Investigated Technology Leaks and Virtual Assets
Diverse Experience in Violent and Criminal Cases

Park Kidong, the former chief prosecutor of the Daegu District Prosecutors’ Office who oversaw major labor cases such as “serious industrial accidents” nationwide, has retired after 25 years in the prosecution and opened a law practice.

According to the legal community on December 17, Attorney Park opened “Attorney Park Kidong Law Office” on the third floor of Lumi Building near Seocho Station in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and began work on December 1.

Attorney Park is known as a leading “public security expert” within the prosecution, having overseen major cases such as serious industrial accidents and election-related incidents nationwide. He investigated and brought to trial the first “Serious Accidents Punishment Act violation” case in the Seoul area. During the adjustment of investigative powers between the prosecution and the police, he served as Director of Criminal Policy at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office and as the head of the Prosecution Reform Team 2, earning a reputation for expertise in criminal procedure.

Attorney Park is also recognized as an “expert in the criminal justice system and policy,” having handled practical negotiations between the prosecution and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) from the early days of the CIO’s establishment. While in office, he was even referred to as the “grim reaper of the CIO.”

Attorney Park’s strengths include his diverse experience in various fields, such as violent crime and criminal cases, in addition to major accident and election cases.

In particular, while serving as the head of the Criminal Division 6 at the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors’ Office, he cracked down on organized crime groups involved in the redevelopment project of Cheongnyangni in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, formerly known as the “Cheongnyangni 588 red-light district.” As a result, the previously stagnant Cheongnyangni District 4 redevelopment project gained momentum. Currently, Cheongnyangni District 4 has been completely redeveloped into a residential-commercial complex with about 1,400 units.

Additionally, while serving as the third deputy chief prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, he arrested and investigated numerous technology leakage offenders, including those involved in the leakage of semiconductor ultrapure water technology and national core technology related to secondary batteries, as well as those responsible for illegal overseas remittances involving virtual assets worth several trillion won.

Attorney Park graduated from Yeongnam High School in Daegu and the Department of Law at Korea University. He passed the 40th National Judicial Examination in 1998, completed the 30th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute in 2001, and was appointed as a prosecutor at the Seoul District Prosecutors’ Office (now Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office).

After serving as a prosecutor in Busan, Ulsan, Incheon, Seoul Eastern District, the Ministry of Justice’s Unification Legal Affairs Division, and as chief of the Andong Branch of the Daegu District Prosecutors’ Office, he was promoted to chief prosecutor, handling special and public security cases at the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors’ Office and violent crime cases at the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office. He then served at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, as chief of the Wonju Branch of the Chuncheon District Prosecutors’ Office, and as the third deputy chief prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, the largest in the country. He concluded his public service as the head of the Public Investigation Department (chief prosecutor) at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office and as chief prosecutor of the Daegu District Prosecutors’ Office.