Prosecutors revealed through an investigation that active-duty police officers who leaked information about wanted fugitives to a private detective even pocketed bribes.

The Suwon District Prosecutors Office announced that it indicted two active-duty police officers last month on charges of leaking secrets and taking bribes in exchange for handing over information on wanted fugitives to a private detective.

According to the Suwon District Prosecutors Office, the police initially forwarded the two corrupt officers to the prosecutors on simple charges of leaking official secrets, relying solely on suspect statements without verifying whether they had accepted money or had accomplices.

However, the prosecutors' office, which took over the case, conducted supplementary investigations including search and seizure, and analysis of account and communication records. They captured circumstances of collusion between the police and the private detective, and brought them to trial with additional charges such as accepting bribes after corrupt acts.

Investigations showed that one of the indicted police officers created a "price list" for personal information searched via official police terminals—such as 150,000 won for vehicle registration lookouts and 800,000 won for criminal investigation history checks—and sold them.

The prosecutors explained that after taking over the case, they identified the existence of private detectives through supplementary investigations such as account tracking, and confirmed the circumstances of money transactions and information leakage routes.

They also pointed out that although the police seized a suspect's mobile phone, they returned the device just before forwarding the case on the grounds that they could not get the password, and the suspect subsequently sold it through a secondhand trading app.

The police reportedly stated, "During the investigation, we applied for a search and seizure warrant for seven months of account records to check the suspect's transaction details, but the prosecutors rejected it on the grounds that there was no validity for a long-term search and seizure of transaction records."

The investigation team that uncovered the bribery charges was selected as an exemplary case by the Supreme Prosecutors Office in July of this year.

Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Lee Ui-sun | Graphics by Yook Do-hyun | Produced by SBS Digital News