The police have decided to mandate reporting for employees who receive inappropriate inquiries regarding investigation and crackdown cases, and to penalize those who fail to report them.

The Korean National Police Agency announced today (August 31) that it will improve the "Case Inquiry Ban System" and the "Private Contact Ban System" starting tomorrow on a pilot basis to enhance the fairness and transparency of case processing.

Following a series of duty-related misconducts such as the leakage of investigative information and official secrets, this move appears to strengthen internal controls over inquiries that could exert undue influence on case handling.

The police will in principle ban inquiries into cases that raise concerns of undermining fair case processing, while expanding the scope of management from former and current police officers to outsiders, including unappointed lawyers and law firm staff.

Passing on case inquiries to other public officials is also prohibited, and police officers who make such inquiries will be disciplined.

If unappointed lawyers or law firm staff inquire about a case, the police plan to review whether it violates the Code of Ethics for Attorneys or constitutes improper solicitation under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, and take necessary measures.

An obligation to report for employees who receive case inquiries will also be newly established.

If an inquiry is received from a serving public official, it must be reported immediately, and employees who fail to report will also be subject to disciplinary action.

The police also plan to codify the regulations prohibiting private contact, which were previously operated as guidelines, into the Korean National Police Agency's Code of Conduct for Public Officials.

Accordingly, contact for non-official purposes with case parties such as suspects, victims, complainants, and legal counsel, as well as individuals linked to prostitution, gambling, or illegal speculative businesses, will be prohibited.

The Korean National Police Agency plans to run the pilot program until early October when the Code of Conduct is revised. During this period, disciplinary measures such as verbal warnings will be applied to detected case inquiry violations, while employees who report case inquiries will be granted rewards such as commendations.

(Photo: Yonhap News)