Three Judges and Four Prosecutors Appointed to Top Posts at Serious Crime Investigation Agency; Choi Jae-min Named Inaugural Chief of Seoul Branch

Jeon Jong-min Appointed as Deputy Chief of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency

The first round of high-level appointments at the Serious Crime Investigation Agency, set to launch the next day, consists of three individuals with a background as judges and four with a background as prosecutors. Jeon Jong-min, an attorney at KnC Law Firm and former judge, has been nominated as the Deputy Chief of the agency’s headquarters. The heads of the six regional branches will be comprised of four former prosecutors and two former judges.

On the 1st, a day before the launch of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency, the agency's signboard was installed at Renes Square in Jung-gu, Seoul, where the main office and the Seoul branch will be located. 2026.10.1. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

On October 1, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced the expected appointments of seven high-ranking investigators: the deputy chief of the agency headquarters and the heads of the six regional branches.

Attorney Jeon Jong-min has been nominated as the Deputy Chief. The regional branch chiefs are: Choi Jae-min (Seoul), Kim Hyung-geun (Suwon), Moon Hong-joo (Daejeon), Hong Jong-hee (Daegu; auditor at the Korean Bar Association Legal Aid Foundation), Kim Ki-uk (Busan), and Lim Eun-jung (Gwangju; Chief Prosecutor of Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors’ Office).

By background, Deputy Chief nominee Jeon as well as Daejeon branch chief Moon Hong-joo and Busan branch chief Kim Ki-uk are former judges. The nominees Choi Jae-min (Seoul), Kim Hyung-geun (Suwon), Hong Jong-hee (Daegu), and Lim Eun-jung (Gwangju) are former prosecutors.

Deputy Chief nominee Jeon, from the 24th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, previously served as a judge at the Chuncheon and Uijeongbu District Courts and the Seoul Administrative Court, and began his legal practice as an attorney in 2006. He was a member of the National Assembly’s legal team during the impeachment trial of former President Park Geun-hye and was also nominated as a candidate for the inaugural head of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in 2020.

Among the nominees for regional branch chief, Kim Hyung-geun (Suwon) and Moon Hong-joo (Daejeon) served as special prosecutors in the Kim Keon-hee special investigation team. Busan nominee Kim Ki-uk was a special prosecutor in the Gwanbongkwon and Coupang special investigation teams.

Kim Hyung-geun, Suwon branch chief nominee, served as head of the special investigation divisions at the Busan and Incheon District Prosecutors’ Offices, director of the investigation command division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, and as chief of the anti-corruption division 1 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. Moon Hong-joo, Daejeon branch chief nominee, previously worked as a judge at the Changwon and Seoul Central District Courts and as presiding judge at the Daejeon District Court. Kim Ki-uk, Busan branch chief nominee, also served as a judge at the Gangneung branch of the Chuncheon District Court and at the Seongnam branch of the Suwon District Court.

Choi Jae-min, Seoul branch chief nominee, is a former Deputy Chief Prosecutor at the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office and Busan District Prosecutors’ Office and was Director of the Inspection Department at the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office. Hong Jong-hee, Daegu branch chief nominee, previously served as Deputy Chief Prosecutor at Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office, Deputy Chief at Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office, and Deputy Chief at Daegu High Prosecutors’ Office.

Lim Eun-jung, nominated chief of the Gwangju branch, is the only current chief prosecutor among the high-ranking appointments and will transfer from her position as Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors’ Office.

Kim Seung-geol, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of Goyang Branch, Uijeongbu District Prosecutors’ Office, has been nominated as the spokesperson for the Serious Crime Investigation Agency’s headquarters. The spokesperson position is a second-tier investigator role.

The Serious Crime Investigation Agency will be officially launched on October 2. The inauguration ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. at the agency’s headquarters, with approximately 120 attendees, including Minister of Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-joong, National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee Chairman Kim Young-jin, National Assembly Legislative and Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Seo Young-gyo, Chief Justice of Court Administration Noh Kyung-pil, and Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials Chief Oh Dong-woon.

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