[Anchor]
It has been confirmed that a senior police officer in his 50s, who has worked in the Gyeongnam region for over 30 years, is undergoing an intensive internal inspection over allegations including sexual harassment against junior female officers. While such inappropriate behavior reportedly continued for years, it appears to have remained hidden for a long time due to his strong influence in the region.
We begin with an exclusive report by reporter Son Gijun.
[Reporter]
According to SBS coverage, the Korean National Police Agency's Audit and Inspection Division has launched an investigation since early this month into Superintendent A of the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency over suspicions including sexual misconduct.
The inspection team is focusing in particular on allegations of sexual harassment against junior female officers spanning several years. Starting this week, the National Police Agency's Human Rights Protection Division, which investigates internal sexual misconduct cases, has also been deployed.
The sexual harassment mostly took place during drinking gatherings, and the number of victims identified so far exceeds 10, which could further increase during additional investigations.
[Official at a Local Police Station: I understand he held many drinking sessions, actively built relationships, and managed his network very well...]br />
A local police official stated, "The targets were not only employees from the same department but also those from other departments, and even female officers from patrol divisions."
Superintendent A, in his late 50s, is a so-called "regional-tied officer" who has spent most of his career spanning over 30 years working in areas such as Geoje and other parts of Gyeongnam province.
He reportedly earned the nickname "King of Geoje" due to the extensive local network he built while working for a long time as an intelligence police officer handling local information and trends.
The official said that the victims' accounts had not come to light previously due to his local influence.
Police have reportedly also secured circumstances indicating that Superintendent A had junior female officers sit with him at drinking sessions involving key figures such as local businesspeople, where he committed sexual harassment.
Following the death of a female firefighter in her 20s last month, who had complained of workplace bullying including being forced to drink, President Lee Jae-myung repeatedly urged the eradication of drinking culture and sexual misconduct within the public sector.
[President Lee Jae-myung (on the 15th): Drinking and having fun is all fine, but do not seat young female employees next to you like that. That inevitably leads to incidents. Young female staff are not playthings.]
Considering the severity of the case, the National Police Agency directly initiated an inspection—bypassing the provincial police agency level typically handling a superintendent-rank officer—and placed Superintendent A on leave.
(Photo: Yonhap News / Video reporting: Jung Kyeong-moon, Video editing: Lee Sang-min, Design: Choi Jin-hoe)
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[Anchor]
The high-intensity inspection is expected to expand to the senior officer's close associates, focusing on who arranged the problematic drinking sessions and who mobilized the junior female officers. It has been confirmed that not only sexual misconduct but also allegations of workplace abuse of power and insubordination have been placed under inspection.
Reporter Bae Seongjae followed up with an exclusive report.
[Reporter]
The National Police Agency inspection team understands that Superintendent A did not directly organize the drinking sessions where the sexual harassment took place.
Instead, two male and female police officers close to Superintendent A primarily arranged the gatherings, and when they called junior female officers, Superintendent A would show up unannounced and commit sexual harassment.
The inspection team has reportedly placed the two officers under inspection alongside Superintendent A.
A local police official stated, "Senior police officers acted almost like pimps."
The inspection team is also verifying allegations of workplace abuse, including claims that other employees paid for Superintendent A's drinks, and that Superintendent A demanded junior staff drive him to and from work or make him clean the fish tank in his office.
SBS coverage confirmed that when Superintendent A was transferred to another police station in the Gyeongnam region during the regular reshuffle last May, he went directly to the head of the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency to protest in an act of insubordination.
When Senior Superintendent B, a high school junior who was present at the scene, tried to stop him, Superintendent A reportedly hurled abusive language at his superior, telling him, "You stay out of this, junior."
In a phone call with SBS, Superintendent A stated, "I will state my position regarding the allegations of power abuse and insubordination after the inspection results come out," adding, "I have never coercively called female officers to dinner gatherings or sexually harassed them."
When asked if he was aware of the nickname "King of Geoje," he replied, "I am merely a division head, and such a nickname is absurd."
(Video editing: Park Na-young, Design: Park Tae-young)
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[Anchor]
Let us discuss this further with reporter Son Gijun, who covered the story.
Q. How was this kind of behavior possible?
[Reporter Son Gijun: During our reporting, a police official mentioned a saying within Superintendent A's police station: "The division head's office moves the police chief's office." It meant that Superintendent A, having worked as an intelligence officer in the region for a long time, could manipulate even the police chiefs who changed periodically. Given that he even went so far as to visit the head of the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency to express dissatisfaction with his personnel assignment using abusive language, his influence was clearly formidable. As a result, some officers loyal to Superintendent A appear to have gathered junior female officers for drinking sessions and practically facilitated sexual misconduct. Most of the junior female officers who suffered sexual harassment or employees who faced workplace bullying were reportedly unable to speak up easily. One local police official told SBS reporters, "I felt like a fool for staying silent and saying nothing," and expressed welcome toward the National Police Agency's high-intensity inspection.]
Q. The "Regional-Tied Police Controversy" Surfaced... What is the Status of the Inspection?
[Reporter Son Gijun: It has been learned that Superintendent A applied for long-term sick leave following his suspension from duty. In a phone call with reporters, Superintendent A flatly stated, "I do not even know the exact reason why the National Police Agency is conducting an inspection, and as for the allegations of sexual harassment or power abuse, there is no such truth." Currently, investigations into the victims are taking place prior to questioning the subject himself. The police agency plans to proceed with a formal investigation if the allegations of misconduct are confirmed to be true through the inspection.]
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