Acting Prosecutor General Roh Man-seok (29th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, Deputy Prosecutor General of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office) submitted his resignation on the 12th. He announced his intention to step down amidst the backlash following the "abandonment of the Daejang-dong case appeal," which has led to collective internal dissent within the prosecution service.

This comes about four months after he assumed the role of acting Prosecutor General following the voluntary resignation of then-Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung in July.

Previously, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office did not file an appeal by the deadline of midnight on the 7th against the first-instance ruling for defendants including Yoo Dong-gyu, former head of the Seongnam Development Corporation's planning department, and businessman Kim Man-bae, who were indicted on charges such as breach of trust under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.

While the Central District Prosecutors' Office argued for an appeal, citing the potential for dispute given some acquittals in the first-instance ruling, it is understood that the leadership of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, after consulting with the Ministry of Justice, did not accept this recommendation.

Amidst speculation that external pressure from the Ministry of Justice influenced the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's decision, Acting Prosecutor General Roh stepped in to provide an explanation. However, demands for resignation also emerged from within the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, from research officials and staff (prosecutor-general level), as well as from prosecutors in the field.

Yonhap News