Top prosecutor offers resignation after Criminal Procedure Act revision passes

Acting Prosecutor General Koo Ja-hyeon offered to resign Friday, shortly after the National Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party, passed a bill aimed at abolishing the prosecution's direct investigative powers.

Koo told reporters he has tendered his resignation offer to take responsibility for the passage of the contested bill.

The revision to the Criminal Procedure Act passed a plenary session in a 175-2 vote with one abstention, after the Assembly voted in favor of a motion to stop a filibuster launched by the main opposition People Power Party the previous day.

Under the bill, the prosecution will be stripped of its authority to conduct direct investigations, including supplementary investigations. Prosecutors will instead be allowed to request judicial police officers to carry out supplementary investigations.

Yonhap