President Lee Urges Major Crimes Agency to 'Investigate Strictly Without Partisanship or Taking Sides'

President Lee Jae-myung called on the recently launched Major Crimes Investigation Agency today (October 6) to "strictly and thoroughly investigate the criminal acts of the so-called powerful leadership classes of society and those with extensive education and wealth, regardless of whose side they are on or whether they belong to the ruling or opposition party."

Presiding over a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House on this day, President Lee made this request, stating, "Our citizens sometimes harbor doubts about whether justice truly exists in this country."

He went on to emphasize again, "Please do everything in your power to establish a fair social order by uncovering the truth so as to completely resolve the doubts of the people regarding cases that raise suspicion, ensuring that in the process no one is treated unfairly and no one gains illicit benefits."

President Lee also urged the acting heads of the Indictment Service and the Major Crimes Investigation Agency, who were attending the Cabinet meeting for the first time on this day, to pay close attention simultaneously to the strict enforcement of the rule of law and restraint in the exercise of authority.

Describing the abolition of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and the launch of the Indictment Service and the Major Crimes Investigation Agency as "a historic decision by the people," President Lee stated, "Never again should investigative and indictment functions be abused, swayed by political power, or fail to properly perform their original roles."

He added, "The basis of investigation and prosecution is to uncover crimes and hold individuals accountable, but preventing innocent people from being wronged in the process is a vital value," quoting the legal maxim that 'it is better to let ten guilty men go free than to wrongfully harm one innocent victim.'

He then emphasized, "No one must ever be wronged under the pretext of maintaining order," adding, "Investigative and indictment agencies, which wield power entrusted by the people, must never create or neglect wrongful treatment against individuals."

Addressing past abuses by the prosecution, he expressed his frustration, saying, "'Cover it up to make money, fabricate it to get ahead'—everyone understands what that means," and asking, "In that turmoil, what happens to the wrongful victims of crime, what happens to the nation's fundamental order, and what about those who were wrongfully turned into perpetrators despite being victims, living their entire lives bearing resentment?"
 
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.