It was learned on the 14th that the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources is pushing to establish a special judicial police unit to directly investigate technology leak cases. A special judicial police unit is a system in which civil servants and others with expertise in a specific field conduct investigations under a prosecutor's direction and refer cases to the prosecution. The Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Customs Service have such units.
According to the government, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office conducted a demand survey in January on special judicial police units across government ministries. The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) was said to have conveyed the view that a special judicial police unit is needed within the ministry for cases such as violations of the Industrial Technology Protection Act.
Accordingly, the key issue going forward appears to be how to divide roles with the Ministry of Intellectual Property. At present, investigations into technology leaks have been carried out by the ministry's special judicial police unit. However, its scope is limited to violations involving trade secret infringement under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act. The ministry is said to have asked to be allowed to investigate cases suspected of violating the Industrial Technology Protection Act as well.
An official at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) said, "We are currently in discussions with the relevant ministries on the matter, and nothing has been decided."