On the 21st, the Ministry of Justice carried out a mid-level prosecutor appointment. In this appointment, all of the first to fourth deputy chiefs of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, the largest prosecutor's office in the country, were replaced. Prosecutors who investigated and indicted President Lee Jae-myung's case, or those who dismissed the cases related to former President Yoon Suk-yeol and his spouse, have been reassigned to less prominent positions.
On this day, the Ministry of Justice conducted personnel changes involving 695 prosecutors, including 665 senior prosecutors and 30 regular prosecutors. The ministry noted that it focused on whether the individuals demonstrated a commitment to the nation and the public, as well as outstanding practical abilities, and appointed talented individuals recognized for their work capabilities and leadership in the prosecution service.
◇ First woman appointed as the first deputy chief of the largest Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office
In this appointment, the first female first deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office has been appointed. Choi Jae-ah (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute) is a new first deputy chief prosecutor, who began her career as a prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in 2005 after graduating from Daewon Foreign Language High School and the Department of Political Science at Seoul National University. Choi is reported to be specialized in sexual crime investigations. She previously served as the head of the Women and Children Crime Investigation Division at the Southern District Prosecutors' Office and holds qualifications as a certified specialist in sexual crimes.
Jang Hye-young (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute) is the new second deputy chief prosecutor, hailing from Jeju. She graduated from Jeju High School and Ewha Womans University with a law degree and started her career as a prosecutor at the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office in 2005. Jang also holds qualifications as a certified specialist in sexual crimes and has primarily worked in the department investigating crimes against women and children.
Park Jun-young (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute) is a new Deputy Chief Prosecutor, born in Sacheon, Gyeongnam. He graduated from Whimoon High School and the Department of Law at Seoul National University. He began his career at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in 2008. Park is recognized for his expertise in public security investigations, and also worked as the head of the Criminal Division 1 at Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, investigating intellectual property crimes, after majoring in laws related to intellectual property in graduate school.
Lee Jun-ho (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute) is the fourth deputy chief prosecutor, originally from Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk. He studied at Gyeongju High School and Kyunghee University, starting his career as a prosecutor at the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office in 2008. He holds certification as a certified specialist in securities and finance. Lee has primarily worked related to capital market crimes and investigations into the recovery of criminal proceeds, having served in the Securities Crime Joint Investigation Team in 2013 and the Overseas Illegal Asset Recovery Joint Investigation Team in 2018.
◇ Prosecutors who indicted Lee and dismissed allegations against Yoon moved to less prominent positions
The previous first to fourth deputy chiefs of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office resigned or were reassigned to the High Prosecutors' Office. Previously, Cho Sang-won, the fourth deputy chief prosecutor who led the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 that dismissed the charges in the Deutsche Motors stock price manipulation case, resigned. Choi Jae-hoon, the head of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2, is moving to the important economic crimes investigation team at Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office. Park Seung-hwan, who led the Criminal Division 1 that dismissed the allegation regarding Kim Keon-hee's Dior bag, submitted his resignation before this appointment. Kim Seung-ho, head of Criminal Division 1, is moving to Busan High Prosecutors' Office.
Recently, Gong Bong-sook, the second deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office who led the case dismissing allegations about Kim Keon-hee's false academic credentials, is moving to the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office. Lee Seong-sik, the third deputy chief prosecutor who indicted President Lee for violating the Public Official Election Act, is assigned to the Daegu High Prosecutors' Office.
Prosecutors who investigated President Lee Jae-myung's Daejang-dong development corruption and illegal remittance to North Korea have also been reassigned to less prominent positions. Eom Hee-jun, the Bucheon District Prosecutors' Office Chief, is moving to the Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office, and Kang Baek-sin, the deputy chief of the Seongnam branch of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, is moving to the Daegu High Prosecutors' Office. Ahn Byeong-su, the second deputy chief prosecutor of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, is moving to Busan High Prosecutors' Office, and Kim Young-cheol, the deputy chief prosecutor of Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office, is moving to Daejeon High Prosecutors' Office.
◇ All deputy chief prosecutors in Suwon District Prosecutors' Office and across Seoul have been replaced
Kim Hyun-a (33rd Judicial Research and Training Institute) has been appointed as the new first deputy chief of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office. After graduating from Gangneung High School and Ewha Womans University with a law degree, she became a lawyer before starting her career as a prosecutor at the Gangneung Branch of Chuncheon District Prosecutors' Office in 2007. She holds qualifications as a certified specialist in sentencing policy. Lee Seong-beom (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the second deputy chief of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, is from Goheung, Jeonnam, and studied at Gwangju Chosun University High School and the Department of Electrical Engineering at Seoul National University. He is recognized for his expertise in hacking and cyberattacks.
All deputy chief prosecutors of the prosecutors' offices in the eastern, western, southern, and northern districts of Seoul have also been replaced. The new first deputy chief prosecutor of the Southern District Prosecutors' Office handling Yeouido and primarily investigating securities and financial crimes is Kim Nam-hoon (33rd Judicial Research and Training Institute), who was born in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. He graduated from Chuncheon High School and the Department of Law at Seoul National University, starting his career as a prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in 2007. Kim holds certification as a certified specialist in planning and has also worked in a task force investigating savings bank fraud.
Park Jin-seong (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the second deputy chief, is from Jindo, Jeonnam. He studied at Gwangju Chosun University High School and Korea University with a law degree before starting his career at the Board of Audit and Inspection in 2005. He holds certification as a certified specialist in inspection and has previously served as the head of the anti-corruption and strong investigation division at Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office and the head of the defense business and industrial technology crime investigation division at Suwon District Prosecutors' Office.
The previous first deputy chief Lee Hee-dong has been assigned to the Busan High Prosecutors' Office, and Kim Jong-woo, the second deputy chief, has been appointed as the chief of Bucheon District Prosecutors' Office.
Ahn Seong-hee (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the new deputy chief of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, is from Busan. She graduated from Munhyeon Girls' High School and the Department of Law at Pusan National University. After serving as the chief reporter for a legal specialty magazine, she passed both the judicial administrative examination and bar exam in 2002, becoming a prosecutor at the Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office in 2005. Ahn has also been involved in investigations concerning crimes against women and children. The previous Deputy Chief Lee Dong-kyun will be moving to the Ansan District Prosecutors' Office.
Kwon Sung-hee (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the new deputy chief of Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office, is from Andong, Gyeongbuk. She graduated from Daegu Kyungmyung Girls' High School and Korea University with a law degree. She started her career at Suwon District Prosecutors' Office in 2005 and became the first female prosecutor assigned to the first Public Security Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in 2012. The current head of the Criminal Division 7 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office has recently dismissed the allegations regarding Kim Keon-hee, the wife of former President Yoon Suk-yeol, concerning false career allegations. The previous Deputy Chief Shin Dong-won has been reassigned to the Daegu Western District Prosecutors' Office.
Lee Jeong-bae (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the new deputy chief of Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office, is from Boryung, Chungnam. He graduated from Daesin High School in Seoul and studied Political Science and Diplomacy at Sogang University, passing the 44th Judicial Examination before starting as a prosecutor at the Seongnam branch of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office in 2005. In 2018, he was dispatched to the special investigation team for illegal manipulation of comments by Druking.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice announced that the ratio of female prosecutors among deputy and senior prosecutors had risen from 25% at the end of last year to 42% in this reshuffle. Not only the first deputy chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office but also Kim Yeon-sil (34th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the Chief of the Drug and Organized Crime Planning Division at the Supreme Public Prosecutors' Office, and Na Ha-na (36th Judicial Research and Training Institute), the Director of Policy Planning, are the first female prosecutors to be appointed to these positions.