Police Launch Investigation into Complaint Against Public Corruption Investigation Office Chief for 'Communication Data Inquiry'... Complainant Under Investigation

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] The police have launched an investigation into a case in which a civic group filed a complaint against Kim Jin-wook, head of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (HCIC), on charges of abuse of authority related to the controversy over the HCIC's access to communication data.

The Anti-Corruption Investigation Unit of the Southern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency summoned a representative of the civic group, the Committee for the Protection of Ordinary People's Livelihoods, on the 30th for a complainant investigation.

Earlier, as the HCIC became embroiled in controversy over accessing and collecting communication data of reporters and others while investigating allegations of 'instigating complaints,' the group filed a complaint with the National Police Agency's Criminal Investigation Headquarters against Kim on charges of abuse of authority and dereliction of duty. The complaint was transferred on the 21st to the Southern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency, which has jurisdiction over the government Gwacheon complex where the HCIC is located.

Regarding the controversy, the HCIC denied the surveillance allegations, stating that it was "a process of excluding individuals from the investigation by verifying the owners of the mobile phone numbers that emerged during the investigation."

Meanwhile, the civic group Legal Action for the Restoration of the Rule of Law (Beopse-ryeon) submitted a complaint requesting punishment of Kim to the prosecution, which was transferred to the Anyang branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office on the 29th and is currently under investigation.

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