'Bribery by a crypto operator'…Dobong police chief arrested

The chief of the Dobong Police Station in Seoul was arrested on charges of accepting bribes from a crypto operator after receiving a request to quash an investigation.

On the 14th, according to the legal community, Lee Cha-woong, the judge in charge of warrants at the Suwon District Court, conducted a pre-arrest suspect hearing (warrant review) the previous day for Senior Superintendent Kim and metropolitan-area police officer A, who are accused of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (bribery), and issued arrest warrants for them. Judge Lee cited "concern about destruction of evidence" as the reason for issuing the warrants.

Senior Superintendent Kim, the Dobong Police Station chief, is accused of receiving tens of millions of won on several occasions from suspect B in a crypto investment-related case. Prosecutors believe Kim took bribes in return for quashing the investigation and have been investigating based on materials seized during a search in September.

The police, based on Kim's explanations, had seen room for dispute and did not take personnel action, but upon issuance of the warrants they immediately removed him from his post. At the time of the search, Kim explained, "I handed over 50 million won as an investment and later got it back with interest," and said, "the claim that I quashed the investigation is also groundless."

With a serving police chief being arrested for misconduct, the police are internally in an unsettled mood. There are concerns that if worries about the police's growing power are highlighted as the government and the ruling party pursue prosecution reform, the police too could be targeted for large-scale restructuring. A senior superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said, "It appears to be an individual's deviation, but public opinion that 'the police must also be reformed' could grow."

Reporter Ryu Byung-hwa hwahwa@hankyung.com