Police, "Father Minjeong Chief Secretary" Kim Jin-guk's Son Not Indicted... "Insufficient Evidence"

Obstruction of Business Charges
Admitted Submission of Relevant Information in Job Application
"May Constitute Deception or Coercion, but Not Hired"
Complainant Plans to File an Objection

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Gyumin] The case of reporting Kim Jin-guk, son of former Presidential Secretary for Civil Affairs Kim, who caused controversy by stating in his job application, "My father is the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs, so he will provide much help to the company," has been dismissed without prosecution.

The Anti-Corruption and Public Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 19th that Kim (32), who was reported on charges of obstruction of business on the 11th, was cleared due to insufficient evidence.

Kim is the son of former Senior Secretary Kim, and he wrote in job applications submitted to several companies that "my father is the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs." When this fact became known, criticism arose that it was an inappropriate act using so-called "appachance" (dad’s influence). In response, former Senior Secretary Kim told the media, "There is no excuse, and I sincerely apologize," but also explained, "My son has been receiving treatment for anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms." Eventually, in December last year, former Senior Secretary Kim expressed his resignation, admitting his fault, and former President Moon Jae-in immediately accepted his resignation.

In December last year, the Judicial Examination Preparation Student Association (Sajunmo) submitted a complaint to the National Investigation Headquarters of the Police Agency, stating, "Since the victim companies all contacted the accused, it is believed that the accused’s actions either obstructed the recruitment work of the victim companies or posed a risk of obstruction."

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which took over the case, investigated the recruitment officers of the companies where the job applications were submitted and the suspect, and confirmed that Kim had indeed submitted job applications containing the relevant statements.

There were two main issues. Whether Kim’s submission of the resume constituted deception or intimidation, and whether this obstructed the recruitment work of the companies.

The act of submitting a resume with false academic background, career, and military service information could be considered "deception" under the crime of obstruction of business. However, the police judged that the crime of obstruction of business was not established due to reasons such as ▲the suspect was not hired by the companies where the resume was submitted ▲the recruitment officers’ statements about hiring decisions and other factors showed no evidence or circumstances that the recruitment process was affected.

Also, the police considered that Kim’s act of stating "my father is the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs" in the resume could be regarded as "intimidation." Nevertheless, the police ultimately judged the evidence insufficient, considering ▲neither Kim nor former Senior Secretary Kim exerted influence on the recruitment officers of each company ▲some companies judged the statement as abnormal and rather rejected the application ▲the intimidation required by Supreme Court precedents was not met.

Kwon Minsik, representative of Sajunmo, said, "He submitted the application with false academic background, career, military service information, and the statement ‘my father is the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs,’ and the company actually reviewed it," adding, "It is against common sense that this does not constitute a crime, and since it is a socially significant important case, we intend to request a re-examination by the prosecution," filing an objection.

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