Abuse of Authority and Obstruction of the Exercise of Rights
Eom Heejun Also Charged with Perjury Before the National Assembly
The special prosecution team led by Ahn Kwonsub, which is investigating allegations of covering up a Coupang case and unpaid severance payments, indicted former Bucheon Branch Chief Prosecutor Eom Heejun and former Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim Donghee at the Seoul Central District Court on February 27.
The Coupang and Kwanbongkwon Permanent Special Prosecutor Team, headed by Ahn Kwonsub, announced on this day, "Former Branch Chief Eom has been charged at the Seoul Central District Court with abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights, as well as violating the Act on Testimony and Appraisal before the National Assembly. Former Deputy Branch Chief Kim has been charged with abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights."
They are accused of pressuring the lead prosecutor to issue a non-prosecution decision in the Coupang unpaid severance case while serving at the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office last year. The special prosecution team believes that, during this process, they ignored the opinion of then-Chief Prosecutor Moon Jiseok, who had called for further investigation or legal review of the case, thereby infringing upon Prosecutor Moon’s legitimate investigative authority.
They are also suspected of instructing Prosecutor Shin Kahyun, who was then the lead prosecutor, to conclude the Coupang case with a non-prosecution opinion by March 7, 2025. In addition, Prosecutor Eom has been charged with perjury for testifying falsely at a National Assembly audit, claiming that he had "never provided a guideline for a non-prosecution decision" and that "Prosecutor Moon also attended the meeting regarding the non-prosecution and agreed."
Prosecutor Moon testified at the National Assembly audit in October last year, alleging that Prosecutors Eom and Kim pressured him to dismiss the Coupang case without charges.
The special prosecution team, which was launched in November last year, summoned former Branch Chief Eom and former Deputy Branch Chief Kim three times each before proceeding with the indictments on this day. However, the team stated that further investigation is needed into suspicions that Coupang lobbied through former prosecutors acting as lawyers and received some information about the investigation. For this reason, Coupang is not included among those indicted at this stage.
Previously, the special prosecution team indicted former Coupang CFS CEO Eom Seonghwan, current Coupang CFS CEO Jeong Jongcheol, and Coupang CFS as a corporation for violating the Act on the Guarantee of Workers’ Retirement Benefits. The team stated that "we have aggregated all currently available unpaid severance cases (amounting to approximately 120 million won in total for 40 employees) and filed a collective indictment."
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