The reform plan being pursued by the Democratic Party includes the abolition of the prosecution's "supplementary investigation rights." Supplementary investigation rights allow the prosecution to supplement areas where the police investigation results are lacking. The Democratic Party plans to finalize the reform plan in a high-level party-government consultation with the presidential office and the government on the 7th.
In response, the legal community has noted that "if supplementary investigation rights are completely abolished, there may be cases where innocent people are unjustly implicated in crimes."
The role of supplementary investigation rights can be broadly categorized into two areas. If there is strong suspicion of a crime but the police have not properly clarified the matter, the prosecution may instruct them to conduct further investigations. Conversely, if there is strong evidence indicating that a crime has not been committed but the police have handed over the case implying guilt, the prosecution can correct this.
It was found that 89% of the technology leak offenders investigated by the police from January to August this year were not prosecuted by the prosecution. This rate was 92.2% in 2022, 90% in 2023, and 86% in 2024, which is three times the overall non-prosecution rate for criminal cases (around 30%). A lawyer specializing in technology leak cases stated, "It seems to stem from the police conducting mass referrals without properly filtering the merits of the allegations."
It is analyzed that several factors are at play here. Firstly, the police are in an environment where it is difficult to cultivate specialized personnel for technology leak cases due to the principle of rotational duty. Additionally, without expertise, it is challenging to achieve investigative results sufficient to refer a technology leak case. Because having fewer referrals could negatively affect personnel evaluations, there are concerns that the police might avoid technology leak cases or refer them en masse.
On the other hand, the prosecution has dedicated investigative departments for technology leak cases within the Supreme Public Prosecutors' Office, focusing on the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, and the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office. A total of 172 prosecutors and investigators are assigned, and there are technical advisors dispatched from the Korean Intellectual Property Office.
A legal professional stated, "Technology leaks are white-collar crimes that are prepared in advance in various forms based on specialized knowledge. Even with the same allegations, whether someone is guilty or not can vary depending on the application of legal principles, so maintaining the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights would be more effective in addressing crime."