The fact-finding investigation team of the Ministry of Justice's Future Committee for Respecting Human Rights in Prosecution (Future Committee), which was scheduled to report the supplementary investigation results on three cases involving alleged abuse of prosecutorial power—including the Wirye New Town development corruption case involving President Lee Jae-myung—failed to submit its report today (the 29th).

Initially, the investigation team planned to attend a closed-door meeting of the committee this afternoon to report the findings of supplementary investigations into three cases: the Wirye scandal, the alleged manipulation of state statistics under the Moon Jae-in administration, and the West Sea official shooting incident.

During its first briefing from the investigation team on the 15th, the committee requested additional explanations regarding the cases, and the team had agreed to report the supplementary investigation results at today's meeting.

Committee members gathered at the Ministry of Justice complex in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, at 3:30 p.m. today as scheduled for the meeting.

Members reported that they had not received the supplementary investigation results in advance and only learned whether the results would be presented once inside the meeting room.

The meeting concluded at around 6:00 p.m., lasting approximately two and a half hours.

Inside the meeting room, the investigation team informed committee members that they could not present the report because the supplementary investigations were still ongoing and unprepared.

After the meeting, Future Committee Chairperson Chang Joo-young met with reporters and stated, "The investigation team said they were not ready to report, so there was no special briefing," adding that "the additional supplementary investigation results are not yet available."

He added that discussions on the three targeted cases—the Wirye scandal, the statistical manipulation case under the Moon Jae-in administration, and the West Sea official shooting incident—did not take place.

Instead, committee members reportedly discussed future operational plans and investigation contents.

The next meeting is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. on November 5.

Previously, the investigation team reviewed the investigation and indictment processes by conducting written inquiries with the former investigation team. On the 15th, they reported to the committee that it was difficult to conclude whether unlawful acts had been committed by the prosecution in any of these cases.

The stance was that while there may have been some negligence during the investigation process, clear evidence showing the investigation team intentionally fabricated the case to indicting defendants could not be found.

In response, committee members reportedly raised questions about whether it was appropriate to conclude guilt and proceed with an indictment despite the simultaneous existence of evidence for both guilt and innocence, and demanded explanations.

They reportedly expressed the position that further supplementary investigations were necessary.

The committee subsequently outlined specific areas requiring supplementary investigation and sent them to the investigation team, which reportedly conducted additional inquiries in writing or via telephone targeting the relevant investigation teams.

The primary focus of this second report is whether the investigation team will maintain its previous conclusion that there were no illegalities in the prosecution's investigation and indictment, and if so, whether the Future Committee will accept it.
 
The Wirye New Town scandal centers on allegations that President Lee, who was the mayor of Seongnam in 2013, provided various favors and internal information to developers during the Wirye New Town development project.

The prosecution indicted President Lee without detention in March 2023, after the launch of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, on charges including violation of the Anti-Corruption Act. The first-instance trial was underway but was suspended following his inauguration as president last year.

Jung Jin-sang, former chief political coordinator for the Democratic Party leader's office and a close confidant of President Lee, was also put on trial under the same charges and is undergoing a first-instance trial.

Five private developers, including Yoo Dong-gyu, former planning division head of Seongnam Development Corporation, lawyer Nam Wook, and accountant Jung Young-hak, were acquitted in the first instance in February, and the ruling was finalized after the prosecution forfeited its right to appeal.

The statistical manipulation case involves allegations that figures from the Moon Jae-in administration manipulated major national statistics regarding real estate, income, and employment to conceal rising housing prices.

In March 2024, 11 individuals—including former presidential policy chiefs Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Sang-jo, and former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi—were indicted on charges of violating the Statistics Act and abuse of authority, and their first-instance trial is currently ongoing.

The West Sea official shooting incident involves allegations that the Moon Jae-in administration covered up and downplayed the killing of Lee Dae-jun, an official at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, by North Korean troops in the West Sea in 2020, framing it as an intentional defection.

In December 2022, the prosecution indicted five security officials from the Moon Jae-in administration—including former Minister of National Defense Suh Wook, former National Intelligence Service Director Park Jie-won (currently a Democratic Party lawmaker), and former Cheong Wa Dae National Security Office Director Suh Hoon—on charges including the creation and uttering of falsified official documents. However, they were also acquitted after the prosecution forfeited its right to appeal.

Launched in June to investigate allegations of power abuse during prosecution investigations, the Future Committee selected seven cases for its first round of investigation, including Wirye, statistical manipulation, and the West Sea incident.

The fact-finding investigation team plans to complete investigations and report on the remaining first-round cases by next month, which include Ssangbangwool's illegal remittances to North Korea, Daejang-dong development corruption, the case involving former Democratic Research Institute deputy head Kim Yong, and allegations of false reporting regarding the defamation of Yoon Suk Yeol.

The 12 cases added as second-round investigation targets in August are: ▲ the Seongnam FC case ▲ the Baekhyeon-dong case ▲ allegations of misuse of Gyeonggi provincial corporate cards ▲ Kim Yong's subornation of perjury ▲ unlawful search and seizure of former High Prosecutors' Office head Yim Jung-hyuk's law office ▲ the Moon Jae-in administration's task-ordered investigation into the Ulsan mayoral election interference ▲ the case involving former President Moon Jae-in's son-in-law ▲ allegations of orchestrated investigations by Cheong Wa Dae ▲ the travel ban on Kim Hak-gee ▲ the case of former Daegu Economic Vice Mayor Kim Yeon-chang ▲ Coupang's unpaid severance pay ▲ and wage arrears at Dayou Winia Group.

Among these, a total of six cases involve charges against President Lee.

Inside and outside the prosecution service, there have been persistent observations that the Future Committee's conclusion regarding the abuse of prosecutorial power could potentially lead to the withdrawal of indictments in President Lee's cases.

Meanwhile, it has been learned that the fact-finding investigation team recently initiated full-scale investigations into the case involving the misuse of Gyeonggi provincial corporate cards by President Lee and his spouse, Kim Hye-kyung, by copying approximately 150,000 pages of related prosecution investigation records.

President Lee was indicted on charges of privately misusing corporate cards during his tenure as Gyeonggi Province governor, but the first-instance trial has been suspended due to his election to the presidency.

Additionally, Ms. Kim was indicted on charges of providing meals to spouses of current and former Democratic Party lawmakers using Gyeonggi provincial corporate cards. She was sentenced to a fine of 1.5 million won in the first and second instances and is awaiting a ruling from the Supreme Court.

(Photo: Provided by the Ministry of Justice, Yonhap News)