Ruling party: "Daejang-dong charges should be dropped"... People Power Party: "Ruling party's show of force devastates judiciary"

Acting Prosecutor General: "Nam Wook, Jeong Yeong-hak, etc.'s statements have changed... Truth must be determined in court"

Prosecutor's supplementary investigation rights under scrutiny... Prosecutor Ahn Mi-hyun: "Complete removal of investigative powers will cause significant side effects, legislators are responsible"

Chairperson Choo Mi-ae questioning (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Hwang Kwang-mo = Choo Mi-ae, Chairperson of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, is questioning during the 2025 Supreme Prosecutors' Office audit at the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee on the 27th. 2025.10.27 hkmpooh@yna.co.kr

On the 27th, the ruling and opposition parties engaged in fierce debates during the Supreme Prosecutors' Office audit by the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, regarding the dropping of charges in the Daejang-dong case involving ruling party figures and the necessity of maintaining the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights after the separation of investigation and prosecution.

The Democratic Party of Korea argued that the prosecution should consider dropping the charges, citing the changing testimonies of key defendants such as Nam Wook and Jeong Yeong-hak in the Daejang-dong case's trial.

In relation to this case, Kim Yong, former Deputy Director of the Democratic Institute and a key confidant of President Lee Jae-myung, and Jeong Jin-sang, former Senior Political Adjustment Officer in the Democratic Party leader's office, are currently on trial as defendants.

The People Power Party retorted, claiming that the Democratic Party was showing off its absolute majority power to ensure that all cases involving President Lee would be ruled 'not guilty'.

Rep. Jeon Hyun-hee of the Democratic Party asserted, "Witnesses in the Daejang-dong case, including Nam Wook and Jeong Yeong-hak, gave false testimonies due to the prosecution's inducement and pressure, and the prosecution conducted a 'kill Lee Jae-myung' investigation. All evidence presented by the prosecution in the Daejang-dong case is unreliable or has been overturned. The prosecution should apologize for the fabricated indictment."

Rep. Jeon further emphasized, "Although a court ruling is pending, with all evidence overturned, shouldn't the prosecution consider dropping the charges?"

Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the same party stated, "The prosecution went too far to catch Lee Jae-myung. This is also revealed in the recorded conversation during Kim Sung-tae's visit in the Ssangbangul case. Nam Wook testified in court on the 17th that he did not give money to Kim Yong. When the prosecution was given investigative powers, they used them to eliminate political rivals."

In response, Acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok stated, "I have heard reports that witnesses, including Nam Wook and Jeong Yeong-hak, have recently shown a trend of changing their testimonies compared to their initial statements in court. However, it is correct that all testimonies must be determined in court."

Acting Prosecutor General Noh continued, "Dropping charges is applicable in extremely limited cases, such as when consent has been reached after indictment in cases where prosecution is dependent on complaint, or when the true perpetrator has been identified. It is the principle that claims made in court must be proven true in court."

Acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok submitting the oath of office (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Hwang Kwang-mo = Acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok, attending as a witness from the institution at the 2025 National Audit of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee in Yeouido, Seoul on the 27th, submits the oath of office to Chairperson Choo Mi-ae. 2025.10.27 hkmpooh@yna.co.kr

Rep. Shin Dong-wook of the People Power Party stated, "There is only one reason why the Democratic Party is trying to dismantle the national system and devastate the fundamental criminal justice system: President Lee's five trials."

Rep. Na Kyung-won of the same party remarked, "The Democratic Party's display of power is tremendous. Since the 21st and 22nd National Assemblies, the Democratic Party's show of force has gone too far, leading to ruthless impeachment proceedings (against ministers, etc.). More than half of the unfortunate situation in South Korea today is the Democratic Party's responsibility."

The prosecution's supplementary investigation rights also came under fire.

Prosecutor Ahn Mi-hyun, who appeared as a witness for the prosecution, argued, "The supplementary investigation rights should remain with the prosecution to protect the rights of vulnerable groups such as children and women."

Prosecutor Ahn had previously exposed allegations of external pressure during the 2018 Kangwon Land recruitment irregularities investigation and subsequently faced disciplinary proceedings within the prosecution.

She emphasized, "While I fundamentally agree with the motives and direction of prosecution reform, there are cases where practical issues arise if the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights are revoked. If significant side effects occur due to this, those who pushed for the legislation unreasonably must bear the responsibility."

She then cited the example of an appeal case where a complainant disagreed with a prosecutor's decision not to indict, as a case of legislative deficiency.

Originally, the High Prosecutors' Office, which reviewed the appeal, would issue an order for reinvestigation, and another prosecutor would conduct the investigation again. However, with the separation of investigation and prosecution, if the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights are abolished, it would appear that requests for supplementary investigation would have to be made to the police.

Prosecutor Ahn elaborated on this scenario, stating, "If cases are handed over to the police in the form of a 'request for supplementary investigation,' this process (police investigation and referral → decision not to indict → appeal → police supplementary investigation) could repeat indefinitely, further delaying case processing."

Prosecutor Ahn Mi-hyun of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, appearing as a witness at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office audit (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Hwang Kwang-mo = Prosecutor Ahn Mi-hyun of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office is greeting at the 2025 National Audit held at the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee in Yeouido, Seoul on the 27th. 2025.10.27 hkmpooh@yna.co.kr

Legislators from the Democratic Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee launched a barrage of criticism at Prosecutor Ahn.

They fired a barrage of questions, including, "If you have so many concerns, why don't you go work at the Serious Crimes Investigation Office?" (Seo Young-kyo), "That's why you're called a prosecutor-like person" (Kim Ki-pyo), and "Having left the prosecution, I can say there is no organization as arrogant as the prosecution" (Lee Sung-yoon).

Prosecutor Ahn stood her ground, stating, "I am a prosecutor who underwent disciplinary proceedings when Yoon Seok-yeol was Prosecutor General. Please do not say I am 'Yoon Seok-yeol's prosecutor.' I was just doing my job. While it is correct for the prosecution to relinquish its direct investigative authority, positive aspects of the overall criminal justice system should not be removed due to the side effects of political prosecution."

She also tearfully remarked, "I acknowledge that the prosecution conducted political and incorrect investigations in the past. However, it is disheartening to face the reality of today."

Meanwhile, Chairperson Choo Mi-ae of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee proposed at the beginning of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office audit on the morning of the 27th to refrain from partisan political disputes, considering the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Gyeongju that week.

However, as the confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties intensified in the afternoon, shouting and protests were repeated. Chairperson Choo exercised her authority to maintain order, ordering the restriction of speaking rights and the expulsion of some People Power Party lawmakers, and then announced that she would also restrict Prosecutor Ahn's speaking rights. Yonhap News