Park Chulwoo, Chief Prosecutor, Returns Investigation Team's Appeal Recommendation
Court Issued Arrest Warrant for Suh Hoon Three Years Ago, Citing Substantiated Criminal Allegations
Concerns Rise Over Possible Repeat of 'Daejang-dong Appeal Abandonment' Controversy
Former National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, who was prosecuted on charges of attempting to cover up the shooting incident involving a government official in the West Sea in 2020, is leaving the courtroom after being acquitted at the sentencing trial held on the 26th at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News
The prosecution is deliberating whether to appeal the acquittal of key security officials from the Moon Jae-in administration, who were found not guilty in the first trial regarding suspicions of a cover-up in the West Sea government official shooting incident. The deadline for appeal in this case is January 2. There are even concerns that a situation similar to the abandonment of the appeal in the Daejang-dong development corruption case could be repeated.
According to the legal community, it is rare for the prosecution to forgo an appeal in cases where all defendants have been acquitted. The prosecution's reasoning is that, since the court's ruling contradicts the results of the investigation, the existence of a crime should be contested in a higher court.
It has been reported that Park Chulwoo, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, returned the investigation team's report containing the opinion to appeal, resulting in no final decision being made by the appeal submission deadline. Park is said to have instructed that further analysis of the reasons for acquittal in the verdict is necessary. An official from the Central District Prosecutors' Office stated, "It is true that the appeal has not yet been submitted, but it is difficult to say who made what decision."
In important cases, the prosecution typically reports the investigation team's opinion on whether to appeal or file a final appeal to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, so Acting Prosecutor General Koo Jahyun is also believed to be aware of the situation. Ultimately, the decision rests with Acting Prosecutor General Koo and Chief Prosecutor Park. If the two decide to forgo the appeal, the prosecution is expected to face another wave of controversy.
Previously, on December 26, the first trial acquitted former National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, former National Intelligence Service Director Park Jie-won, former Defense Minister Suh Wook, former Korea Coast Guard Commissioner General Kim Honghee, and former NIS Chief Secretary Noh Eunchae, who had been indicted on charges including abuse of authority.
The court ruled not guilty on all charges brought by the prosecution, stating that "the evidence is insufficient." The court found it difficult to conclude that Suh and others attempted to cover up the shooting and incineration or to frame the incident as a defection to North Korea.
Because this case has seen conflicting judgments even within the courts, there is growing support for the opinion that an appeal is necessary. In December 2022, after a 10-hour warrant review, the court issued an arrest warrant for Suh, stating that "given the seriousness of the crime, his position, and his relationships with related parties, there is a risk of evidence destruction." This indicated that there was some substantiation of the allegations that he ordered the deletion of intelligence or directed efforts to frame the incident as a defection to the North.
A lawyer who previously served as a chief prosecutor commented, "Even if there is a risk of evidence destruction or flight, if the crime is not substantiated, an arrest warrant is not issued. It's not that prosecutors and judges have different views, but rather that the judges themselves have differing opinions, so this is an issue that needs to be contested."
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