New Prosecutor General starts his term with cases involving former and incumbent presidents

Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung

Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung began his two-year term on September 16. Shim, who received his appointment letter from the presidential office on the 18th, will be sworn in at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on the 19th.

As the second prosecutor general under the Yoon Suk-yeol government, he will inherit a number of cases involving the family members of former and incumbent presidents, including the acceptance of a luxury bag by First Lady Kim Keon-hee and the manipulation of Deutsch Motors' stock price, and the investigation into former President Moon Jae-in's alleged preferential hiring of his ex-son-in-law. It is expected that the success or failure of Shim's early tenure will be determined by how fairly he handles these politically charged cases.

The most imminent case is that of Kim's alleged acceptance of a luxury bag. On September 24, the Prosecutor's Investigation Review Committee will be held for Choi Jae-young, the pastor who provided Kim with gifts, including a luxury bag. Many believe that the case will be concluded within the month, as almost all procedures have been finalized except for the committee meeting.

Although it is widely expected that the prosecution will not indict Kim, it could enter a new phase if the committee for the pastor continues its investigation or gives an opinion of indictment, unlike the committee for Kim, which was held ahead of the Pastor Choi's.

The investigation into Kim's alleged involvement in Deutsch Motors stock manipulation is also expected to conclude soon. After the court convicted “financer” Mr. Son on charges of aiding and abetting in the stock price manipulation appeal trial of former Deutsch Motors Chairman Kwon Oh-soo and others on September 12, public opinion has increased that the first lady, who played a similar role with Son in the process of the share price manipulation, should also be prosecuted. Nevertheless, if the prosecution concludes that Son's case and Kim's case are separate and that Kim should not be charged, it is expected that there will be a strong backlash from the opposition and civil society. Conversely, if the prosecutors indict Kim, a confrontation with the presidential office is inevitable.

The prosecutor general has been stripped of his investigative powers in the case. It will be interesting to see whether Shim will attempt to reinstate his investigative power, or whether he will give up intervention on the case.

It will also be interesting to see if there will be a change in the direction of the investigations related to the opposition parties, such as former President Moon Jae-in and Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) leader Lee Jae-myung, under Shim.

The Jeonju District Prosecutor's Office is conducting an investigation as it presumes the salary and housing allowance that Mr. Seo, Moon's ex-son-in-law, received when he was the executive director of Thai Eastar Jet as a bribe to Moon.

After analyzing the evidence, the prosecution plans to subpoena Moon's daughter, Da-hae, for questioning. The investigation against Moon is likely to follow. The Suwon District Prosecutor's Office is investigating DPK leader Lee and his wife, Kim Hye-kyung, for allegedly misusing a corporate card of the Gyeonggi Province.

The prosecutor's office, which has already summoned Kim once, has sent a written questionnaire to Lee.

Shim's biggest challenge will be to convince the public that the prosecution has not lost its political neutrality in the high-profile cases involving family members of former and incumbent presidents and the opposition leader.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.