Four-Way Race for Inaugural Head of Serious Crime Investigation Agency: Kim Gwan-jeong, Kim Ji-yong, Moon Hong-ju and Lee Yun-je Shortlisted

[Financial News] Attorney Kim Gwan-jeong, attorney Kim Ji-yong, attorney Moon Hong-ju and Myongji University professor Lee Yun-je have been selected as candidates to become the inaugural head of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency. The Minister of the Interior and Safety will formally nominate one of them to the president, after which the president will make the final appointment following a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. The agency’s head will oversee investigations into seven major crimes: corruption, economic crimes, defense procurement, narcotics, crimes against national security, cybercrime and distortion of law.
The Candidate Recommendation Committee for the Head of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency held a meeting at the Government Complex Seoul on the 4th and selected four candidates: Kim Gwan-jeong, managing attorney at Kim Gwan-jeong Law Office; Kim Ji-yong, an attorney at Apex Law Firm; Moon Hong-ju, an attorney at Law Firm Ilsun; and Lee Yun-je, a professor in the Department of Law at Myongji University.
Managing Attorney Kim Gwan-jeong is a former senior prosecutor who served as chief of the Criminal Affairs Department at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office of the Republic of Korea (SPO), chief of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office and chief of the Suwon High Prosecutors' Office. While serving as chief of the SPO’s Criminal Affairs Department, he clashed with then-Prosecutor General Yoon Suk Yeol over the investigation into the so-called “prosecutor-media collusion” case.
Attorney Kim Ji-yong is also a former prosecutor who served as chief of the Chuncheon District Prosecutors' Office and deputy chief prosecutor of the Suwon High Prosecutors' Office. In 2022, he headed the Serious Accident Investigation Team at the Serious Accident Investigation Support Task Force. He resigned in 2023 while serving as deputy chief prosecutor of the Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office.
Among the candidates, attorney Moon Hong-ju has judicial experience. He served as a special counsel assistant on the Special Counsel Team Investigating Allegations of State Affairs Manipulation by Kim Keon-hee, where he was responsible for investigating allegations surrounding the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway.
Professor Lee Yun-je previously served as a prosecutor at the Suwon, Jeonju and Cheongju District Prosecutors' Offices before becoming a professor at Ajou Law School. In 2025, he served as a special counsel assistant investigating the truth behind alleged insurrection and foreign-exchange acts by former President Yoon Suk Yeol and others. He led the investigation into former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae and others.
Lee Ju-won, chair of the candidate recommendation committee, said, "We comprehensively reviewed the people recommended by citizens, considering not only the legal qualifications stipulated by law but also the expertise and experience required to perform the duties of agency head, as well as the ability to lead the organization stably."
The committee explained that it did not uniformly exclude candidates with prosecutorial backgrounds. Lee said, "The four recommended candidates comprise two people with prosecutorial careers, one with a judicial career and one incumbent criminal law professor," adding, "There was broad agreement that it would not be appropriate to uniformly exclude people under review simply because they had prosecutorial experience."
He added, "We focused our review on the qualities and capabilities required of the inaugural agency head, taking into account investigative expertise, leadership needed to establish the new organization and an understanding of the purpose and role of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency."
Under the Serious Crime Investigation Agency Act, the committee may recommend at least three candidates to the Minister of the Interior and Safety. The committee explained that selecting four candidates was intended to ensure diversity within the candidate pool.
Lee said, "We referred to the case in which the Prosecutor General Candidate Recommendation Committee recommended four people," adding, "We unanimously decided to recommend four candidates in order to ensure diversity among those recommended."
The committee received 23 people publicly recommended by citizens between the 19th and 26th of last month. After excluding 12 people who either did not consent to the review from the outset or withdrew their consent during the process, the remaining 11 became the final candidates for review.
All 11 had been recommended by citizens. Although the Minister of the Interior and Safety may also recommend candidates under the law, it was confirmed that Minister Yun Ho-jung did not recommend a separate candidate.
Superintendent Baek Hae-ryong, who had been mentioned as a possible candidate for the inaugural agency head, was among the 23 people publicly recommended and consented to the review, making him one of the 11 people subject to final review. However, he was not included among the four ultimately recommended candidates.
Lee said, "Superintendent Baek was among the 23 people publicly recommended, and because he consented to the review process, he was included among the 11 people subject to final review." He added, "After discussing his eligibility as a candidate for agency head, the committee resolved not to recommend him."
The committee did not disclose the specific evaluations of individual candidates or the reasons for their exclusion. It explained that the details of individual reviews could not be disclosed because the committee’s meetings are confidential under the law.
With the candidate recommendation process complete, the final selection has been handed over to Minister Yun. He is expected to formally nominate one of the four candidates recommended by the committee to the president. The president will then make the final appointment of the inaugural head of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency following a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. The agency will be launched on October 2.

[email protected] Lee Bo-mi Reporter