PPP leader to meet with Gwangju police chief due to murder case controversy

Opposition leader Jang Dong-hyeok is set to visit the southwestern city of Gwangju on Thursday to meet with its police chief due to growing controversy over the police handling of a murder case involving a female high school student.

Rep. Jang of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) was initially scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Han Seong-sook at the National Assembly. He canceled the meeting to visit Gwangju instead.

During his meeting with the commissioner of the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency, Jang is expected to discuss a wide range of issues, including allegations that police officers leaked information and destroyed evidence during the probe.

He is also expected to stress the need to preserve the prosecution's right to conduct supplementary investigations, one day after the ruling Democratic Party (DP) unilaterally introduced a bill aimed at completely scrapping the prosecution's supplementary investigative rights.

The PPP has cited the recent case as an example that highlights the importance of the prosecution's supplementary investigation authority.

"It was only through the prosecution's supplementary investigation that the truth behind this grave crime was uncovered and the violent offender was properly indicted," PPP senior spokesperson Choi Bo-yoon said in a statement.

In May, police arrested Jang Yoon-gi on charges of murdering a female high school student and attempting to murder a male high school student in Gwangju.

The case has since sparked allegations that local investigators had improper ties to Jang's father, a serving police official in the city.

Yonhap