Kim Seung-won, candidate for Minister of Justice, additionally accused of soliciting new drugs

Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jeon Jae-hoon = Justice Minister candidate Kim Seung-won, who is embroiled in suspicions of so-called 'new drug solicitation', is being accused one after another by conservative civic groups.

Candidate Kim's suspicion of soliciting new drugs has already been suspended by the prosecution once in December 2024. The key question in the future is whether the police can reinvestigate in this situation.

First of all, in the legal world, the prevailing view is that in the case of a suspended indictment, since it is not a final judgment from the judge, investigative agencies such as the police can investigate again.

According to a report by Yonhap News on the 6th, the civic group Committee for the Living of the Common People (Common People's Committee) submitted a complaint to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on the 4th requesting an investigation into candidate Kim on charges of violation of the Political Fund Act, abuse of power, violation of the Anti-Graft Act, and solicitation of a broker.

They argue that the suspicion that Candidate Kim received a request from Mr. Kang, CEO of Genencell, a COVID-19 treatment company, through broker Mr. Yang in 2021, and requested Minister Kim, the Minister of Food and Drug Safety at the time, to quickly approve clinical trials of Genencell treatment, should be investigated through a police investigation.

Through the complaint, the Common People's Committee claimed that Candidate Kim's request to Director Kim to 'take good care of' the approval of Genencell's clinical trial amounted to an abuse of power.

In addition, it was argued that another investigation was needed into Candidate Kim's promise to receive donations in return for requesting clinical trials from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

This is the second accusation following former Seoul City Council member Lee Jong-bae's earlier accusation of candidate Kim and former Minister of Food and Drug Safety Kim Kang-lip on charges of violation of the Anti-Graft Act, abuse of power, and dereliction of duty.

As the complaint has been received, the police plans to decide whether to initiate an investigation after reviewing the legal principles and investigating the accuser.

In the legal community, there is an opinion that if the police investigating the case accusing candidate Kim finds new evidence and forwards the case, the decision to suspend prosecution may be overturned in the future.

A lawyer who used to be a deputy chief prosecutor explained, “Because a suspended indictment does not have the same res judicata as a judge’s final ruling, the investigative agency can investigate again.”

The power of res judicata refers to the effect under litigation law that prevents a decision once confirmed from being contested in another lawsuit later.

Candidate Kim's side responded to the suspicion by saying, "We asked to look into ensuring that the clinical trial procedures of domestic small and medium-sized companies were not unduly delayed during the coronavirus pandemic," and "we did not request approval for a treatment, priority review, relaxation of standards, or omission of procedures."