Han Dong-hoon 'Abuse of Authority' Jung Jin-woong Deputy Chief Prosecutor Appointed Research Fellow at Judicial Research and Training Institute... 13 Months After Incident

Jung Jin-woong, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of Ulsan District Prosecutors' Office. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] Jeong Jin-ung, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of Ulsan District Prosecutors' Office, who was indicted for assaulting Prosecutor Han Dong-hoon during the investigation of the 'Channel A Coercion Attempt' case and was convicted in the first trial, has been reassigned as a research fellow at the Judicial Research and Training Institute.

On the 19th, the Ministry of Justice announced that Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong would be appointed as a research fellow at the main branch of the Judicial Research and Training Institute effective the 23rd. The transfer of Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong, who is currently serving in an active prosecutorial position, to a non-investigative department as a research fellow is interpreted as a de facto suspension from his duties.

Jeong was indicted on charges of assault causing injury (assault by a public official under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes) for assaulting Prosecutor Han during a search and seizure of a mobile phone SIM card at the Yongin branch office of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, where Prosecutor Han was working, on July 29 last year while serving as Chief Prosecutor of the Criminal Division 1 at Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.

On the 12th, the 22nd Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Yang Cheol-han) found Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong guilty of general assault by a public official, sentencing him to four months in prison with a one-year probation and a one-year disqualification from his professional qualifications.

Both the prosecution and Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong have since filed appeals.

After Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong was indicted, Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye delayed personnel action and only stated that he would consider personnel measures after the court's guilty verdict, which sparked controversy. This personnel action was taken 13 months after the incident occurred.

Jeong Young-hak, currently the Human Rights Protection Officer at Suwon High Prosecutors' Office, has been appointed as Jeong Jin-ung's successor.

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