Two Weeks Until Prosecution Loses Investigative Authority... "Simply Adding Police Personnel Has Its Limits"

With 15 days remaining until the revised Criminal Procedure Act of the Republic of Korea takes effect, the police are moving to expand investigative personnel, a key factor in ensuring the new system takes hold. As supplementary investigations increase, investigators will have to revisit existing cases, conduct additional inquiries and secure evidence, which could increase their workload. Experts advised that, alongside expanding the workforce, it is important to help newly assigned personnel gain investigative experience and adapt quickly to field operations.
According to the police on the 17th, the Korean National Police Agency assigned an additional 1,907 investigators to investigative departments in the first half of this year and plans to assign 2,100 more in the second half. However, only a small portion of the 2,100 personnel will represent a genuine increase in staffing. Most will be existing personnel, including members of mobile units, reassigned to investigative departments.
The police are expanding investigative personnel to address the growing workload caused by the increase in supplementary investigations and to secure experienced investigators. From January through July this year, prosecutors requested approximately 76,000 supplementary investigations, about 14,000 more than during the same period last year. The proportion of such requests relative to the police's decisions to refer cases to the prosecution also rose by 2.9 percentage points, from 14.2% to 17.1%.
The problem is that the increase in supplementary investigations will not simply mean a larger workload. Investigators must review cases that have already been investigated and conduct additional inquiries and secure further evidence, making their experience and expertise crucial. Handling new cases at the same time could also lengthen the amount of time spent on each case.
Yang Hongseok, an attorney at Igong Law Firm, said, "Requests for supplementary investigations currently account for about 10% to 15% of all cases, but I believe that figure could rise to 60% to 70% if the system changes." He added, "Even at 60%, supplementary investigation work would increase roughly four- to fivefold from current levels, making it crucial to secure investigative personnel and experienced investigators." An Yeongrim, an attorney at Seonseung Law Firm, expressed concern, saying, "With new cases continuing to be filed, cases could move back and forth between the police and the prosecution due to requests for supplementary investigations. Work could stall, creating bottlenecks and worsening the overall backlog of cases."
Some have also pointed out that assigning cases to investigators with limited experience could delay their resolution as supplementary investigations are repeated. Yeom Gun-woong, a professor in the Department of Police and Fire Administration at U1 University, explained, "Investigations are a specialized field in which procedural compliance, legal judgments and administrative work are intricately intertwined, so experience and expertise are extremely important." He added, "If experienced personnel are in short supply, mistakes are highly likely to be repeated during investigations."
Despite these circumstances, investigative departments have struggled to secure personnel consistently. The investigative track is a qualification in the investigative field that police officers obtain through an examination, but even among officers who hold it, there is a tendency to avoid investigative work because of the heavy workload and substantial responsibility.
Above all, critics say the response should not stop at simply increasing the number of personnel.
Bae Sang-hoon, an adjunct professor in the Department of Police Administration at Woosuk University, advised, "Since it is difficult to put personnel without investigative experience into the field within a short period, simply increasing headcount has its limits." He added, "Systematic training programs must be established so that new investigators can quickly build their expertise."
[email protected] Seo Ji-yoon Reporter