Police Refer 535 for 'Endemic Corruption Crackdown'... Task Force to Be Expanded

The First Key Investigation Task:
Illegal Activities Related to Negotiated Contracts by Public Officials

The police have investigated and referred 535 individuals, including members of metropolitan councils, to the prosecution as part of a special crackdown on endemic corruption.

The National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency announced on the 19th that, since the special crackdown on endemic corruption began in March, they have investigated 1,450 individuals in 554 cases over a four-month period. Of these, 535 have been referred to the prosecution, and 20 were arrested for serious offenses. The crackdown targeted corrupt practices by public officials, such as unfair contracts, financial irregularities, abuse of power, and misuse of internal information.

Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, National Police Agency Criminal Investigation Headquarters. Photo by Jin-Hyung Kang

Notably, the Anti-Corruption Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency arrested 15 individuals, including metropolitan council members, for financial corruption. They accepted 450 million won as kickbacks in exchange for budget allocation and selection of suppliers. Of these, 3 individuals have been arrested. The Gangseo Police Station in Seoul also achieved results by arresting the chairperson of a local council and others for receiving several tens of millions of won in cash and a gold necklace in exchange for appointing special and contract employees at the district council. Two of them were detained.

The police believe that a rigorous crackdown is necessary to break the cycle of corruption based on long-standing collusion between local governments and local power brokers, and plan to expand the special crackdown starting from July 20, as they reach the halfway point of the campaign.

First, the National Investigation Headquarters will establish a task force dedicated to policy planning and investigation command regarding endemic corruption involving local collusion. In addition to the existing Anti-Corruption Economic Crime Investigation Units at each city and provincial police agency, Metropolitan Crime Investigation Units will also be incorporated into the dedicated investigation framework to conduct a stricter crackdown.

Furthermore, led by the Chief of the Endemic Corruption Investigation Unit (Director of the Investigation Bureau at headquarters), a regular evaluation meeting for eradication efforts will be held at least once a month. These meetings will check nationwide crackdown results and notify relevant parties of institutional improvements to maintain momentum for the campaign.

Intensive investigation tasks identified through interdepartmental cooperation will be managed directly by the headquarters. The first key task will focus on illegal activities related to negotiated contracts involving local council members, public officials, or other public servants.

Hong Seokki, Chief of the National Investigation Headquarters, stated, "Regardless of position or rank, we will conduct thorough investigations without sanctuary to solidify integrity in local administration and do our utmost to eradicate region-specific corruption."

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