Prosecutors' Office Denies Chief Prosecutor in Alleged Reported Solicitation Case Was Former Aide to Ruling Party Lawmaker... Refutes Chosun Ilbo Report

"Only in charge of preliminary investigation, Chief Prosecutor is Choi Seok-gyu, Head of Investigation Division 3"

Government Gwacheon Complex High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, legal affairs specialist] The High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (HCIO) has denied the Chosun Ilbo report claiming that the 'whistleblower scandal' case was assigned to a prosecutor who was a former aide to a ruling party lawmaker, stating that the report is inaccurate and is considering legal action.

On the 13th, the HCIO issued a press release titled "Chosun Ilbo: Prosecutor Formerly an Aide to a Ruling Party Lawmaker Involved in Yoon Seok-yeol Investigation Article," rebutting that "the lead prosecutor for this case is not Prosecutor Kim Sook-jung of Investigation Division 3, as reported by Chosun Ilbo, but Deputy Chief Prosecutor Choi Seok-gyu of Investigation Division 3."

They added, "We regret that the HCIO's independent investigation has been reported as if it were a political investigation based on false information," and stated, "The HCIO plans to review and pursue legal measures such as requesting corrections and rebuttals through the Press Arbitration Commission regarding the related content."

On the same day, the HCIO pointed out that the Chosun Ilbo article assumed ▲the HCIO assigned this case to Prosecutor Kim Sook-jung of Investigation Division 3, who is a former aide to a ruling party lawmaker, causing controversy, and ▲that there were internal reactions within the HCIO such as "We cannot understand this assignment decision," and "Due to Prosecutor Kim's background, this case should normally have been avoided," ▲and that during the search and seizure on the 10th, the fact that former Prime Minister Yoon was registered as a suspect was unusually disclosed with the comment "Whether there is guilt or not is a matter for later," as reported.

In response, the HCIO stated, "The 'whistleblower scandal' investigation was assigned on the 9th to Deputy Chief Prosecutor Choi Seok-gyu of Investigation Division 3, who is the lead prosecutor, and prosecutors belonging to Investigation Division 3 are participating in search and seizure and related investigations under his direction."

The HCIO explained, "On the 6th, according to the case handling regulations, the preliminary investigation of the complaint filed by the Citizens' Action for Judicial Justice (Sasehaeng) was entrusted to Prosecutor Kim, who had received a support order from the Case Analysis and Investigation Officer's Office," adding, "Prosecutor Kim's assignment to support case analysis was already made on July 29."

They continued, "Case analysis is a preliminary investigation stage to determine whether to register a case after receiving a complaint or accusation," and "Whether to register the case as a high-ranking official crime is decided by the HCIO chief, who then designates the lead prosecutor (in this case, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Choi) upon registration."

The HCIO stated, "Therefore, the claim that assigning this case to a specific prosecutor raises concerns about politically biased investigations misinterprets the HCIO's pursuit of political independence and neutrality and disparages the investigation's intent," and "Furthermore, reporting as if the personal background of a prosecutor participating in the investigation team would influence the investigation seriously damages the individual's honor."

The HCIO also rebutted the report that the fact of former Prime Minister Yoon being registered as a suspect was unusually disclosed.

The HCIO said, "The fact that former Prime Minister Yoon was registered as a suspect became known when, during the search and seizure at the National Assembly office building on the 10th, Representative Kim Woong loudly read the search warrant contents in his office and then explained the warrant details to reporters in front of the office," emphasizing, "Chosun Ilbo has never officially requested confirmation from the HCIO regarding the facts related to the case assignment in connection with this article."

Earlier, Chosun Ilbo reported that Prosecutor Kim, a former aide to former Democratic Party lawmaker Pyo Chang-won, had a history of working as a defense attorney in cases involving the ruling party during her time as a lawyer, implying concerns about biased investigations.

In fact, Prosecutor Kim defended Professor Jang Young-pyo of Dankook University, who was indicted for listing former Minister Cho Kuk's daughter as the first author of a medical paper during her time as a lawyer, and was known to have been part of the defense team for current and former ruling party lawmakers in the 'National Assembly Fast-Track Clash Incident.'

Additionally, before joining the HCIO as a prosecutor, she worked at the law firm LKB & Partners, which handled major cases involving key ruling party figures such as Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, former Gyeongnam Province Governor Kim Kyung-soo, and former Environment Minister Kim Eun-kyung.

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