Kim Jong-chul, newly appointed as Vice Administrator of the Korean National Police Agency, said, "My heart is heavy about how to put things back together when public distrust is high."
Meeting reporters on the morning of the 2nd on his way to the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency, the new Vice Administrator Kim noted that public distrust has risen due to cases such as the "Jang Yoon-gi case" and the "Jeju missing person false closure case," and stated accordingly. The new Vice Administrator Kim said, "I am considering how to put things back together," adding, "I will do my best."
The government the previous day carried out personnel moves for senior superintendents general and superintendents general in the second half and appointed Kim, chief of the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency, as Vice Administrator (senior superintendent general) of the Korean National Police Agency.
The new Vice Administrator Kim will also serve as acting commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency. With the commissioner general post vacant for an extended period, Kim must lead the 140,000-strong police organization while also working to allay concerns about police investigations ahead of the enforcement of the amended Criminal Procedure Act.
The new Vice Administrator Kim entered the police in 1997 as a cadet for executive candidates and has served as head of the public safety bureau at the Gangwon Provincial Police Agency and the South Chungcheong Provincial Police Agency, and as head of the public safety and traffic bureau at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. Since September last year, Kim has led the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency.
The new Vice Administrator Kim is scheduled to move to Seoul after a farewell ceremony at the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency on the day. The inauguration ceremony will be held on the 3rd.