As the 'open door' of the Serious Crimes Investigation Office (Serious Crimes Investigation Office) has become a reality, voices of concern are growing within the legal community.
The first task of the Central Investigation Agency is to complete the selection and establish a computer system to have the appearance and appearance of an investigative agency.
Furthermore, follow-up measures must be taken to ensure neutrality and independence as an investigative agency.
Experts suggested that the Central Investigation Agency needs to be more specific in its investigation targets in order to avoid the controversy over 'selective admission of cases' experienced by the predecessor organization, the High-ranking Public Officials Crime Investigation Office (Corruption Investigation Office).
This means that the criteria for investigation or transfer should be clearly set in advance, and discussions on case jurisdiction with investigative agencies such as the police and the High-ranking Public Officials Crime Investigation Office (Corruption Investigation Office) should also be carried out smoothly.
He also pointed out that an objective evaluation should be conducted in the future to determine whether the Central Investigation Agency has escaped controversy over political neutrality and completed prosecution reform.
◇ Manpower, computer, and office are all inadequate… “Anyone can see that this is a hasty opening.”
The Central Investigation Agency's urgent task is to quickly complete the selection process and establish a working environment for the investigation.
On the 2nd, the Heavy Water Administration began work with about 1,900 people, which is only 66% of its capacity of 2,874.
Looking at the status of personnel recruitment compared to the quota for each main office and regional office, Busan Office was the highest at 74.2% and Gwangju Office was the lowest at 58.3%. Other local offices are in the 60% range.
The computer system required for practical work is only partially implemented. The Central Investigation Agency is currently using the Police Criminal Justice Information System (KICS) with some modifications. It is expected to take three years to build its own Kix.
The office was not fully equipped. It is known that only 6 floors out of the 2nd to 17th floors of Rene Square in Jung-gu, Seoul, where the main office of the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government are located, can be used immediately after launch.
There are no partitions installed in the office and computers are not properly supplied.
Professor Han Sang-hee of Konkuk University Law School said, “Anyone can see that it was a hasty opening,” and Professor Lee Chang-hyeon of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Law School commented, “It was a launch that raised questions about whether there was a will for reform.”
Park Chan-woon, a professor at Hanyang University Law School who served as the chairman of the prosecution reform promotion group advisory committee, told Yonhap News, "The government should have prepared more thoroughly, but this is a regret." He added, "We need to quickly increase personnel to enable a normal investigation."
◇ Blocking the ‘selective admission’ experienced by the Office of Public Prosecution is also a task… “We must prevent recurrence at the Central Investigation Office.”
Attorney Yang Hong-seok, who served as an advisory member of the Prosecution Reform Promotion Team, suggested that the Central Investigation Agency should make 'selection and focus', but establish clear standards in advance for this purpose.
Although the scope of investigation is legally determined, it is too broad compared to the size of the organization, so there is a need to set standards for cases to be investigated and cases to be transferred.
In a phone call with Yonhap News, lawyer Yang said, "Among serious crimes, some are subject to investigation by the police and others by the Corruption Investigation Office," and added, "If there are no standards for which to transfer and which to investigate, this could lead to another controversy."
He emphasized the need to make these standards public.
Attorney Yang said, “If the standards are placed only within the Heavy Investigation Agency, speculations or controversies may arise,” and “We need to disclose to some extent whether the standards have been established transparently and objectively.”
The Corruption Investigation Office has previously faced controversy over selecting targets for investigation.
In the early days of its launch, the Corruption Investigation Office assigned complaint and accusation cases to prosecutors in charge of case investigation and analysis, reviewed the need to initiate an investigation, and then assigned them, which sparked controversy over 'selective filing'.
As criticism arose that the Corruption Investigation Office was a 'targeted investigation' by only indicting former President Yoon Seok-yeol (then presidential candidate) on multiple charges, the Corruption Investigation Office implemented revised case work rules in 2022 that included abolishing selective indictment to resolve the controversy.
As the scope of the investigation overlaps with that of other investigative agencies, there were concerns about case competition.
Professor Park emphasized that there will be a fight between investigative agencies over specific cases, and that the Investigative Jurisdiction Coordination Council must be activated as soon as possible.
The revised Criminal Procedure Act requires a council to be established to mediate jurisdictional conflicts between investigative agencies, but the relevant provisions will go into effect on February 5 of next year, meaning that for about four months, the agency will have to rely on consultations between agencies without an official coordination body.
Professor Park recently said on social media, “With the launch of the new system, investigation competition can become a reality at any time,” and “We need to come up with a way for the Investigative Jurisdiction Coordination Council to actually operate as quickly as possible.”
Professor Han also said, "As the work of investigative agencies is competing, if the Central Investigation Agency makes a mistake, there is a possibility that the initiative in its work will be taken over by the police and it will be reduced to a weak organization. As the current law does not specify which cases will be transferred or directly investigated, there is a need for the police and the Central Investigation Agency to negotiate and create a protocol."
◇ The key is to resolve political neutrality... Post-evaluation and command authority of the Minister of Public Administration and Security
As it is an organization launched as part of the prosecution reform initiated by the ruling party, resolving political neutrality and securing trust is the most fundamental task of the Central Investigation Agency.
It is expected that the controversy over political neutrality will not subside for some time as three former assistant special prosecutors from the special prosecution team launched by the current government are included in the recent appointment of heads of the Regional Heavy Investigations Offices.
Experts pointed out that there is a need to objectively evaluate the investigation performance of the Central Investigation Agency in the future.
Professor Park proposed establishing a separate ‘Prosecution Reform Evaluation Committee’ (tentative name) and pointed out that “an objective and independent organization is needed to evaluate the performance of prosecution reform.”
At the same time, he suggested, “We must take on the role of discovering the side effects caused by changes in the investigative system and recommending prompt alternatives accordingly.”
The fact that the Minister of Public Administration and Security has the authority to command the investigation of the Central Investigation Agency was also pointed out as a factor that undermines political neutrality.
Professor Lee said, “The Minister of Public Administration and Security’s right to command the investigation undermines the purpose of establishing the Central Investigation Agency, which is to conduct an independent and fair investigation,” and added, “If it is under the direction of the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, which does not have legal and investigative experts, it will inevitably be politically vulnerable.”
Professor Han also said, “The Central Investigation Agency is too vulnerable to external political pressure,” and added, “There is a need to create an internal and external governance system to monitor and check political investigations.”
