'Leak of Crackdown Information' Disciplinary Police Officers 17 in 4 Years... 5 in Seoul Police

14 Dismissed
Illegal Activities Persist Despite Calls for 'Eradication'

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] It has been confirmed that the number of police officers disciplined for collusion, such as leaking raid information to illegal establishments, reached 17 over the past four years. Despite strong calls to eradicate collusion between the police and entertainment establishments following the Burning Sun incident, the problem persists.

On the 24th, Asia Economy reviewed the "Number of disciplinary actions for leaking raid information on illegal establishments over the past four years" obtained from the National Police Agency. From 2017 to last year, a total of 17 police officers were disciplined for leaking raid information to illegal establishments such as prostitution businesses. Among them, 14 were dismissed, and one each received dismissal, demotion, and pay reduction. By year, the number decreased from 4 in 2017 to 2 the following year, then increased again to 7 in 2019, and 4 were disciplined last year. However, until March of this year, no police officers have been disciplined for illegally leaking raid information.

By rank, lieutenants, who are mid-level managers leading raids within the police, accounted for the largest number at 11. Next were sergeants with 4, and inspectors with 2. By affiliation, Seoul police had the most. Over the past four years, 5 police officers from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency were disciplined, followed by 3 from the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency. Additionally, 2 each from Daegu Police Agency and Daejeon Police Agency, and 1 each from Incheon Police Agency, Gwangju Police Agency, Gyeonggi Bukbu Police Agency, Jeonnam Police Agency, and Gyeongbuk Police Agency were caught.

Although public opinion was strong in 2019 to eradicate illegal collusion following the Burning Sun scandal, on the 12th of this month, a police officer who received sexual favors in exchange for informing a prostitution broker of raid schedules was sentenced to prison. Police officer A (48), charged with dereliction of duty and other offenses, was sentenced to one year in prison with a two-year probation in the first trial but was sentenced to one year and six months in prison and detained in court during the appeal. From February to June last year, A was responsible for raiding entertainment establishments at a police station in Seoul but did not even file charges after uncovering B’s prostitution brokerage. From July last year to February this year, A also shared raid information via a KakaoTalk group chat. Additionally, A is accused of accepting bribes, including accompanying B to prostitution raids and receiving sexual favors and entertainment at nightclubs.

Professor Lee Yun-ho of Dongguk University’s Department of Police Administration explained, "Such misconduct occurs because the benefits gained from leaking raid information outweigh the losses from being caught. It is necessary to actively detect illegal activities to instill the awareness that ‘it’s not about bad luck but that misconduct will definitely be detected and punished.’"

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