Park Sangyong Appears Before Justice Ministry Audit Committee..."Adding Members Is Like a Player Switching Referees"

"Was Not Informed of the Committee's Agenda...
Requests to Review and Copy Records Were Also Denied"


Suspended from Duty for Four Months and Facing Additional Audits


"Concerns in Many Respects"

Park Sangyong, Deputy Chief Prosecutor at the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office, who was referred for disciplinary action on charges such as violation of regulations during the investigation into the Ssangbangwool remittance to North Korea case, appeared before the Ministry of Justice’s Audit Committee on August 13. Park raised procedural concerns regarding the recent additional appointment of audit committee members, saying, "It is similar to a player replacing the referee."

Yonhap News

Earlier in the afternoon at the Gwacheon Government Complex, before attending the committee’s review, Park told reporters, "I was not even informed of what would be discussed, and I had so little notice that I had to come alone without legal counsel."

He added, "I tried to review important records related to the disciplinary action, but both my requests to view and photocopy the documents and my information disclosure requests were rejected," and, "Even my request to postpone the hearing by just one week was denied." He continued, "Despite these difficult circumstances, as a prosecutor of the Republic of Korea, I will answer when a state institution calls me, explain my situation, and do my best."

Regarding the recent additional appointment of audit committee members by the Ministry of Justice, he stated, "I learned about it directly from the audit officer," and criticized, "It is highly inappropriate, akin to a player switching out the referee or a prosecutor replacing the judge in a trial."

When asked whether he considered the audit a retaliatory measure against those involved in the investigation into the remittances to North Korea, Park did not explicitly call it "retaliation." However, he said, "The suspension from duty was carried out in a highly unusual manner, there were changes in audit committee members in the middle of the process, and additional separate audits have also been conducted," expressing concern about several aspects of the process.

In April, the Ministry of Justice suspended Park from duty, citing violations of official duties and actions that called the fairness of the investigation into question during the course of the remittance to North Korea case. Later, the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office cited his provision of external food and special visitation conditions to detainees, as well as his failure to prepare a verification report during the investigation, and requested a two-month suspension as a severe disciplinary action.

Park also faced an additional audit for posting on social media during work hours and for attending a People Power Party-only hearing without submitting a written report to his superiors. The audit committee is reviewing these matters together to determine the necessity and level of disciplinary action.

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