Top prosecutor says he'll exercise authority in first lady's case if appealed

Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung speaks in a parliamentary inspection of the Supreme Prosecutors Office, Oct. 21. Yonhap Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung said Monday he will exercise his investigative authority in an alleged stock manipulation case involving first lady Kim Keon Hee, if the prosecution's recent decision not to indict her is appealed.

Shim made the remarks in a parliamentary inspection of the Supreme Prosecutors Office, four days after the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office announced the non-indictment for Kim over allegations that her stock trading accounts were used in a massive stock price manipulation scheme involving Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer, between 2009-2012. Opposition parties strongly protested the decision, and the accuser in the case, former Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) lawmaker Choi Kang-wook, has vowed to file an appeal with the Seoul High Prosecutors Office. Asked by a DPK lawmaker whether he is willing to exercise his investigative authority if the Seoul High Prosecutors Office begins a probe into the first lady's case, Shim said he thinks so.



Under a 2020 order issued by then Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, the prosecutor general was stripped of investigative authority for the alleged stock manipulation case involving Kim. For that reason, last Thursday's decision not to indict Kim was finally made by Lee Chang-soo, chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office, and was just reported to the top prosecutor. Shim said he was only briefed on the non-indictment and has not seen any specific records on the case.

He went on to say the case will be thoroughly reviewed again if there is an appeal. (Yonhap).