Seoul Police Chief Kim Bong-sik, Accused of Treason, Intends to Waive Detention Warrant Hearing

by Lee Seohee

Published 12 Dec.2024 16:39(KST)

Kim Bong-sik, the Chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, who has had an arrest warrant requested against him on charges related to the December 3 martial law incident, is reported to have expressed his intention to forgo the pre-arrest suspect interrogation (warrant hearing).

Kim Bong-sik, Commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, is reporting on duties at the plenary meeting of the Administrative Safety Committee held at the National Assembly on the 5th to inquire about the circumstances of President Yoon Seok-yeol's declaration and lifting of martial law. Photo by Yonhap News.

According to police and legal circles on the 12th, Chief Kim is believed to have decided not to attend the warrant hearing, considering that the investigation is being conducted by the police and that he served as the head of the Investigation Bureau at the National Police Agency from October last year to June this year.

Due to the nature of the warrant hearing, the accused actively disputes the charges. The perspective inside and outside the police is that this decision reflects an intention not to clarify matters during the investigation stage and also to avoid placing a burden on the organization to which he belonged.

It is reported that Chief Kim has appointed a lawyer who is a former senior prosecutor (Chief Prosecutor). If the prosecution requests the arrest warrant and former Chief Kim actually does not appear for the warrant hearing, the court will decide on the detention based on a written review of the evidence submitted by the police and others. In the legal community, there have been frequent precedents where high-ranking judges and prosecutors have waived warrant hearings for similar reasons in the past.