Next Prosecutor General Race Features Four-Way Contest Among Kim Osu, Koo Bonseon, Bae Seongbeom, and Jo Namgwan... Lee Seongyun Eliminated (Summary)

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[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Hyung-min and Kim Dae-hyun] The Prosecutor General Recommendation Committee has decided to recommend four candidates for the next Prosecutor General to the Minister of Justice: former Deputy Minister of Justice Kim Oh-soo, Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office Chief Prosecutor Koo Bon-sun, Legal Research and Training Institute Director Bae Sung-beom, and Deputy Prosecutor General Cho Nam-gwan.

Lee Sung-yoon, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, who was considered a strong candidate, was not included in the candidate pool.

The recommendation committee held a meeting on the 29th and selected these four candidates to recommend to Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye. Minister Park is expected to soon select one of them as the final candidate and propose the nomination to President Moon Jae-in.

Kim Oh-soo (58, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 20), former Deputy Minister, hails from Yeonggwang, Jeonnam, and has served as head of the Special Investigation Division 1 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, head of the Criminal Division at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office, head of the Scientific Investigation Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, chief prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office, and director of the Legal Research and Training Institute.

He served as Deputy Minister of Justice, assisting consecutively the former ministers Park Sang-ki, Cho Kuk, and Choo Mi-ae under the current administration. In 2019, he was listed as a candidate for Prosecutor General alongside former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, and after leaving the prosecution, the Blue House attempted to appoint him as an audit committee member.

However, during his tenure as Deputy Minister, he faced internal criticism for failing to properly mediate conflicts with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and siding with the government. Recently, he underwent a written investigation regarding allegations of illegal travel bans involving former Deputy Minister Kim Hak-ui.

Koo Bon-sun (53, class 23) is from Incheon and has served as head of the Policy Planning Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, spokesperson for the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, and head of the Criminal Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office. In January last year, during the first personnel reshuffle by former Minister Choo Mi-ae, he was promoted to chief prosecutor of a high prosecutors' office and served as Deputy Prosecutor General.

In 2015, while serving as chief prosecutor of the Western Branch of the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office, he was deputy head of the special investigation team for the 'Sung Wan-jong list' formed at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, working closely with then team leader former Prosecutor General Moon Moo-il.

Bae Sung-beom (59, class 23), director of the Legal Research and Training Institute, is from Masan, Gyeongnam. He has served as head of the Special Investigation Division at the Busan District Prosecutors' Office and head of the Investigation Division at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. During the Park Geun-hye administration, he was dispatched as deputy head to the Anti-Corruption Task Force under the Prime Minister's Office.

Under the current administration, he was promoted to chief prosecutor and served as head of the Violent Crimes Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office. Before Lee Sung-yoon, he served as chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, overseeing investigations into former Minister Cho Kuk's family corruption and allegations of election interference in Ulsan mayoral elections. Although promoted to chief prosecutor of a high prosecutors' office during former Minister Choo Mi-ae's personnel reshuffle, he was assigned to the Legal Research and Training Institute, unrelated to investigations, leading to speculation that it was a 'demotion disguised as a promotion.'

Currently acting as Prosecutor General, Deputy Prosecutor General Cho Nam-gwan (56, class 24) is from Namwon, Jeonbuk, and has been considered one of the leading candidates for Prosecutor General.

He served as an administrative officer in the Presidential Office of Inspection during the late President Roh Moo-hyun's administration, then as head of the Narcotics and Organized Crime Division at the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office, and as head of the Human Rights Investigation Division at the Ministry of Justice. Early in the current administration, he led the National Intelligence Service's Task Force for clearing deep-rooted evils, was promoted to chief prosecutor, and served as head of the Prosecutor's Office during former Minister Choo Mi-ae's tenure.

Former Minister Choo promoted him to chief prosecutor of a high prosecutors' office and appointed him Deputy Prosecutor General. However, during last year's disciplinary incident involving former Prosecutor General Yoon, he openly opposed former Minister Choo by posting a public letter urging the withdrawal of the disciplinary request.

Last month, when Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye ordered a re-examination of the former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook case at a Supreme Prosecutors' Office chiefs meeting, Cho was praised for cleverly involving chief prosecutors in the meeting to prevent the conflict from escalating.

It is notable that Lee Sung-yoon, who was considered a strong candidate with a 'pro-government' stance, was excluded from the candidates. Analysts believe that allegations of investigation interference ultimately hindered his candidacy.

In 2019, while serving as head of the Anti-Corruption and Violent Crimes Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, Lee was accused of exerting undue influence on the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office Anyang Branch, which was investigating allegations of illegal travel bans involving former Deputy Minister Kim Hak-ui, and became a suspect. The Suwon District Prosecutors' Office investigating Lee plans to indict him soon.

However, former Minister of Justice Park Sang-ki, who presided over the meeting, stated regarding Lee's exclusion, "I do not believe the prosecution investigation influenced the decision," and added, "It was not discussed in detail."

After the meeting, former Minister Park explained, "The process was conducted fairly and transparently according to regulations," adding, "The atmosphere of the meeting was good. Everyone was satisfied with the proceedings. There were no significant disagreements regarding the results."

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