'Gongsu Office First Prosecution' Former Chief Prosecutor Kim Hyeong-jun's First Trial Today

Former Chief Prosecutor Kim Hyung-jun

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The first trial for the bribery case of former Chief Prosecutor Kim Hyeong-jun (52), who was directly indicted for the first time since the launch of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency (Gong-su-cheo), is set to take place.

On the 22nd, Judge Kim Sang-il of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 1 will hold the first hearing for former Chief Prosecutor Kim, who was indicted on charges of bribery, at 10:30 a.m. The trial of lawyer Park (52), who is accused of giving bribes to former Chief Prosecutor Kim, will also be held together.

Previously, former Chief Prosecutor Kim was prosecuted on charges of accepting a bribe of 10 million won and receiving hospitality worth approximately 930,000 won twice, in exchange for providing investigative convenience in a criminal case involving his former prosecutor colleague, lawyer Park, while working at the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office in October 2015.

It was investigated that former Chief Prosecutor Kim asked lawyer Park to defend Kim's high school classmate and sponsor, Mr. Kim (52), in an embezzlement case and used lawyer Park as a proxy in matters concerning the relationship between Mr. Kim and former Chief Prosecutor Kim's mistress.

Former Chief Prosecutor Kim claimed during the Gong-su-cheo investigation that there was no connection between his duties and the bribe or any quid pro quo relationship, but Gong-su-cheo indicted him based on Supreme Court precedents regarding duty-relatedness and quid pro quo relationships.

Mr. Kim claimed that the three monetary transactions totaling 45 million won between former Chief Prosecutor Kim and lawyer Park also constituted bribery, but Gong-su-cheo decided not to prosecute after considering the relationship between former Chief Prosecutor Kim and lawyer Park, the motive for the money transactions, repayment, and timing of repayment.

Former Chief Prosecutor Kim was also investigated by the prosecution in October 2016 for these charges but was cleared due to lack of circumstantial evidence. At that time, the prosecution separately indicted former Chief Prosecutor Kim on charges of receiving money and hospitality from Mr. Kim, and in 2018, the Supreme Court confirmed a suspended prison sentence.

The legal community widely believes that the fate of Gong-su-cheo is essentially at stake in this trial. If the court recognizes former Chief Prosecutor Kim's guilt, Gong-su-cheo could be seen as playing a role in uncovering crimes missed by the prosecution; however, if the opposite occurs, Gong-su-cheo could face an existential crisis. Meanwhile, former Chief Prosecutor Kim has appointed former Constitutional Court Justice Lee Jeong-mi, who read the impeachment ruling of former President Park Geun-hye, among his defense attorneys.

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