‘Gobalsaju’ vs ‘Jebosaju’... Attention on the Simultaneous Investigation by the Corruption Investigation Office

From the left, former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, who is implicated in the 'accusation manipulation' suspicion, former Deputy Director of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Investigation Information Policy Division Son Jun-sung, People Power Party lawmaker Kim Woong, Cho Seong-eun, who is involved in the 'tip-off manipulation' suspicion, and Park Ji-won, Director of the National Intelligence Service. / Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Division (PCC), which is accelerating its investigation into the 'accusation manipulation' allegations, is drawing attention as it is increasingly likely to simultaneously investigate the 'tip-off manipulation' allegations filed by the Yoon Seok-yeol campaign.

Both allegations?the opposition party's leading presidential candidate's abuse of prosecutorial power (accusation manipulation) and the National Intelligence Service's interference in the presidential election (tip-off manipulation)?carry explosive potential to determine the outcome of this presidential election. As a result, political circles and the legal community are focusing on the intensity and speed of the PCC's investigation into both allegations.

PCC Completes Search and Seizure... May Summon Related Parties Before Chuseok

On the 14th, the PCC's Investigation Division 3 (Chief Prosecutor Choi Seok-gyu), which is investigating the 'accusation manipulation' allegations, is analyzing the seized items obtained from search and seizure operations at the residences and offices of former Deputy Director of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Investigation Information Policy Division Son Jun-sung and People Power Party lawmaker Kim Woong, preparing for summons investigations of the two individuals.

The PCC conducted a follow-up search and seizure at lawmaker Kim's office the previous day, completing the verification and extraction of data from the office PCs and the secretarial staff's PCs.

Having completed the complainant investigation two days after receiving the accusation on the 8th and summoned the whistleblower, Cho Seong-eun, as a witness on the 9th, the PCC is expected to begin summons investigations of key figures, including lawmaker Kim, as early as this week.

Growing 'Tip-off Manipulation' Allegations Due to Cho Seong-eun's Actions... Simultaneous Investigation Inevitable

The PCC is also expected to soon assign the case and launch a full-scale investigation into the 'tip-off manipulation' allegations filed yesterday by former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol's side. These allegations accuse Cho, National Intelligence Service Director Park Ji-won, and an unidentified individual from a specific election campaign who was present at the meeting between the two on August 11, of violating the Public Official Election Act.

A PCC official stated, "It will go through the same procedures as the 'accusation manipulation' case," adding, "First, the complaint will be reviewed."

The core of the 'tip-off manipulation' allegations lies in the connection between the meeting of Cho and Director Park and the whistleblowing related to the current 'accusation manipulation' allegations. Cho, who has consistently denied consulting with Director Park regarding this whistleblowing, recently intensified suspicions in an interview with a broadcasting company by stating, "The date of September 2 (as reported by News Bus) was neither desired by our director nor me, nor was it a date we discussed or were consulted about."

Furthermore, it was revealed that just before meeting Director Park, Cho downloaded or captured about 100 image files with an automatically generated phrase "Sent by Son Jun-sung" in a Telegram chatroom with lawmaker Kim, raising suspicions that Cho may have discussed the timing or content of the report with Director Park.

Since the whistleblower in the 'accusation manipulation' allegations has become the accused, and with the presidential election imminent, the PCC, which must avoid political neutrality controversies, is compelled to proceed with a swift investigation.

Legal Community: "Both Investigations Are Difficult"... Skeptical About Proving Former Prosecutor General Yoon's Involvement

The legal community largely expects that it will be difficult to approach the substantive truth in both cases.

Regarding the 'accusation manipulation' allegations, unless it is proven that former Prosecutor General Yoon was directly involved or at least informed and aware, even if it is confirmed that accusation letters were exchanged between former Policy Officer Son and lawmaker Kim, who have a personal friendship, Yoon would not bear legal responsibility beyond moral accountability.

Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye claims that Yoon and former Policy Officer Son have a very special relationship, but Son was appointed directly by former Minister Chu Mi-ae during a time when Yoon strongly wished for the predecessor's retention.

A lawyer A, a former prosecutor familiar with the situation at the time, said, "Before Son came to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, the only time the two worked together was in 2017 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. At that time, Son was the head of the Criminal Division 7, and Yoon was the district chief prosecutor. Unless it was a special or public security department, there was almost no direct contact between the district chief prosecutor and the division heads."

Regarding the 'tip-off manipulation' allegations, even if there is substance, it is expected to be difficult to uncover evidence proving secret conversations or material exchanges between Cho and Director Park.

For now, confirming whether a third party was present at their meal and, if so, identifying that individual will likely be the first step in the investigation.

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