Ministry of Justice: "Prosecution of Choi Kang-wook is a 'rush job'... Considering inspection"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] On the 23rd, the Ministry of Justice stated that the prosecution's indictment of Choi Kang-wook, the Blue House Secretary for Public Office Discipline, was a "rush indictment" and said that "there is a need for an inspection." In a statement sent to the press corps in the afternoon, the Ministry of Justice said, "Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae received a report on the progress of the indictment of Secretary Choi from Lee Sung-yoon, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and understood the circumstances."

According to the Ministry of Justice, Chief Prosecutor Lee reported to Minister Choo that he gave specific instructions, saying, "'It is not that we decided not to indict, but indicting without a face-to-face investigation of the person involved is problematic in terms of investigative procedures, so it is appropriate to handle the case after a summons investigation.'" However, despite this instruction, the investigation team, including Song Kyung-ho, the 3rd Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and Ko Hyung-gon, Head of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2, indicted without the approval and consent of the Chief Prosecutor. The Ministry of Justice confirmed the need for an inspection regarding the circumstances of the indictment, which may violate the Prosecutors' Office Act, and said, "We are carefully reviewing the timing, subject, and method of the inspection."

Earlier, the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (led by Chief Prosecutor Ko Hyung-gon) indicted Secretary Choi without detention on the charge of falsifying an internship activity confirmation letter for the son of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk. The investigation team reportedly requested approval from Chief Prosecutor Lee on the afternoon of the 22nd by presenting the indictment and evidence list, but since Chief Prosecutor Lee did not give final approval, the indictment was ultimately filed with the court on the morning of the 23rd under the direction of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.