Crime agency chief nominee vows to avoid selective investigations

Kim Ji-yong, nominee to head the newly established Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, said Wednesday that he would avoid selective investigations to leave no one falsely accused of crimes.

Kim said during the confirmation hearing at the National Assembly that he was aware of public concerns about investigations with political intentions to selectively pressure specific figures.

"If outcomes in our investigations do not constitute a crime, we will not hesitate to decisively close the case," said Kim, who was nominated to the vice-ministerial post by President Lee Jae Myung in early September.

Procedural justice in a criminal investigation is key to uncovering the truth, he said.

The SCIA was established as part of prosecutorial reforms aimed at reducing the power held by the prosecutors' office.

Spun off from the national prosecution's office, the SCIA is dedicated to investigating what are defined as major crimes, including white-collar crimes, narcotics-related crimes, tech theft, insurrection and treason.

However, the SCIA has no power to bring the accused to criminal trial, unlike the prosecution, which had the authority to both investigate and indict the accused. The SCIA is under the control of the Interior Ministry, alongside the National Police Agency, rather than the Ministry of Justice as the prosecutors' office was.

At the hearing, Kim said that the SCIA will "prioritize human rights to ensure that no one falls victim to unjust investigative processes," and that it will "exercise rigorous oversight" to ensure fair and transparent treatment.

Kim was grilled by liberal lawmakers at the hearing for his past involvement in politically motivated prosecutions and for failing to openly protest the prosecution's "politically motivated" indictments.

One example is the 2021 indictment of a former presidential secretary under former liberal President Moon Jae-in, who was indicted on allegations of banning former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui, who was facing allegations related to a sex scandal, from leaving the country.

Another example is the 2020 indictment of Jeong Jin-woong, a prosecutor who was brought to trial for using violence in his attempt to investigate Rep. Han Dong-hoon, who was then a prosecutor facing allegations of his role in a reporter's abuse of power.

During the hearing, Kim denied Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Youn Kun-young's claims that Kim was aware of the injustice within the prosecutors' office at the time but did nothing.

Before Wednesday's hearing, Kim's nomination drew backlash from within the ruling liberal bloc.

Liberal politicians, such as Gyeonggi Province Gov. Choo Mi-ae and Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Rep. Kim Yong-min, have openly opposed the nomination.

Choo, a liberal heavyweight, likened the nominee, who had known former President Yoon Suk Yeol while working as a prosecutor, to a subordinate of former German dictator Adolf Hitler, while lawmaker Rep. Kim said the nominee was "a subject of (prosecutorial) reform," not a nominee.

Calls to cancel Kim's nomination also erupted from within the SCIA, as Im Eun-jeong, head of the agency's Gwangju regional office, claimed Kim is unfit for the position. Im subsequently became a target of the first internal inspection by Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung on Sunday.