Opposition: "Kim Changmin Case Exposes Investigation Failures, Calls for Comprehensive Review of Investigative Authority Reform"

Song Eon-seok of People Power Party Raises Concerns
"If Supplementary Investigation Rights Are Abolished..."

On April 4, Song Eon-seok, Floor Leader of the People Power Party, addressed the problems within the criminal justice system exposed by the tragic death of the late director Kim Changmin, and called for a comprehensive review of the adjustment of investigative powers between the police and the prosecution.

Through social media on this day, Floor Leader Song stated, “At the end of last year, it was revealed that the late director Kim Changmin, who saved four lives through organ donation before passing away, actually died as a result of a brutal group assault, which has come as a shock.” He continued, “After watching the released CCTV footage, I was overwhelmed with indescribable anger. The assailants drove the victim into the corner of a restaurant, assaulted him indiscriminately, dragged the collapsed man out of the restaurant, and continued the violence until it resulted in death. I was left speechless by such brutality.”

Floor Leader Song also said, “I could not contain my anger and horror at the fact that violence was inflicted to the point of death in front of the victim’s son, who has a developmental disability, and that the assailants even snatched the phone away when a store employee tried to report the assault.” He lamented, “It is impossible to distinguish whether such acts are those of humans or of demons.”

He pointed out, “The problem is that our legal system is far too lenient toward the perpetrators. For over five months, the assailants have been freely walking the streets, while the bereaved family lives in fear of retaliation, let alone receiving an apology.” Song further stated, “An even bigger problem was the police’s initial failure to respond and their incompetent investigation. Although there were six perpetrators, the police initially identified only one as a suspect and requested an arrest warrant. It was only after the prosecution requested a supplementary investigation that two arrest warrants were reapplied for, four months later.”

He criticized, “If not for the request for a supplementary investigation, the police, in all their incompetence, would not have even correctly identified the perpetrators. It is appalling that both the police, who failed to properly investigate a fatal group assault, and the court, which dismissed the matter by claiming the suspects had a fixed residence, acted so irresponsibly.” In particular, Song questioned, “Are the police truly a group capable of conducting criminal investigations? If the prosecution’s right to request supplementary investigations is abolished, I seriously doubt whether cases like that of director Kim Changmin can ever be properly investigated in the future.”

He went on to propose, “Our society must comprehensively re-examine the adjustment of investigative powers between the police and prosecution, and the system for supplementary investigations, not from the political perspective, but through the eyes of crime victims like the late director Kim Changmin.”

Director Kim died after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage caused by a unilateral assault that stemmed from a noise dispute with a person in their twenties at another table while dining with his autistic son at a restaurant in Guri, Gyeonggi Province, in the early morning of October 20, 2025. Although his death was initially known as a moving story of organ donation to four people, it was later revealed to be the result of fatal assault, causing widespread shock. Furthermore, the police initially identified only one individual as a suspect and requested an arrest warrant, but when the prosecution requested supplementary investigation and rejected the application, the police reapplied by adding accomplices on charges of injury resulting in death. However, the Namyangju Branch of Uijeongbu District Court dismissed the request, citing “fixed residence and no risk of evidence destruction,” and as a result, two suspects were referred to the prosecution without detention. This case has been cited as a clear example of the deficiencies in the initial police investigation and the problems within the current criminal justice system.

Moreover, the victim’s family directly obtained the CCTV footage and brought the case to public attention. After the police identified only one perpetrator and referred them without detention, the family secured the restaurant’s CCTV footage and collected witness statements to submit to the prosecution, which led to the identification of additional suspects.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.