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Former CIO prosecutors' arrest warrants rejected by Seoul court

Published: 18 Nov. 2025, 15:33

Kim Sun-kyu, former Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) deputy chief prosecutor, left, and Song Chang-jin, who served as acting deputy CIO chief last year, are each seen on different dates in this composite photo [NEWS1]

A Seoul court on Monday rejected arrest warrants for two former senior prosecutors from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) accused of obstructing the investigation into the death of Marine Lance Corporal Chae Su-geun.

The Seoul Central District Court, after overseeing the pretrial detention hearing, ruled that “while there are grounds for dispute over the factual and legal aspects of the charges, the suspects should be allowed to defend themselves without being detained.”

The warrants had been requested by the special counsel team led by Lee Myeong-hyeon.

The court added that based on the suspects’ professional backgrounds, family situations, cooperation with the investigation and attendance history, there was insufficient reason to believe they would flee or destroy evidence.

Kim Sun-kyu, a former CIO deputy chief prosecutor, is accused of abuse of power for allegedly interfering with the investigation last spring while serving as acting CIO chief. Kim ordered investigators not to summon key figures involved in the case ahead of the April 10 general election, according to the special counsel.

The special counsel team also argued that Kim expedited parts of the investigation to create justification for a potential presidential veto of the special counsel legislation, thus allowing external political factors to inappropriately influence the probe.

Song Chang-jin, who served as acting deputy chief proseuctor of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) last year, leaves Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul after a pretrial detention hearing on Nov. 17. [YONHAP]

Song Chang-jin, who served as acting deputy CIO chief last year, faces similar charges. He is accused of lifting a travel ban on former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup — a central suspect in the case — and of obstructing a search warrant request targeting former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The special counsel said it had secured testimony from a CIO official claiming that Song issued instructions to lift the travel ban in March last year, after Lee was nominated as Korea’s ambassador to Australia. This allegation was included in the arrest warrant request.

Song also faces perjury charges under the Act on Testimony, and Appraisal before the National Assembly. He allegedly made false statements during a July 2024 session of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, claiming that “all warrants to obtain former Yoon’s communication records were rejected” and that he “was unaware of Blackpearl Invest CEO Lee Jong-ho’s involvement in the case.”

Kim Sun-kyu, former Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) deputy chief prosecutor, leaves Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul after a pretrial detention hearing on Nov. 17. [YONHAP]

The special counsel argued that Song, in his position as acting deputy CIO chief, would have been fully briefed on the investigation and could not have been unaware that a warrant had been issued or that Lee Jong-ho was suspected of lobbying to obstruct the probe.

Earlier, the special counsel sought warrants for seven individuals — five in connection with alleged interference in the investigation, including former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, and two Marine Corps officials suspected of mishandling Chae’s death. The court rejected all of those requests, including the one for former 1st Marine Division Commander Lim Seong-geun.

With Monday’s denial of warrants for the two former CIO prosecutors, the special counsel’s efforts to accelerate its final investigations into the Marine death case are expected to face delays.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG HYE-JEONG [[email protected]]