Kim Ji-yong, the nominee for the inaugural head of the Major Crimes Agency, will begin preparations for his confirmation hearing on September 8. With the agency set to launch on October 2, his first challenge will be to recruit personnel and integrate a mixed team of prosecutors and police to prevent any gaps in investigations.
According to legal sources, Kim will report to the government office in the Changseong-dong annex of the Government Seoul Complex for the first time on the afternoon of September 8. He is expected to share his thoughts on his nomination and plans for the agency during his commute.
The preparation team will primarily consist of personnel from the Major Crimes Agency's preparatory committee and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. The prosecution will dispatch ten investigators from grades 4 to 7 to the preparation team from September 9 to October 1. All dispatched personnel are said to have applied for special appointments to the Major Crimes Agency.
The Major Crimes Agency will officially launch with a total of 2,874 personnel, including its headquarters and six regional offices in Seoul, Suwon, Daejeon, Daegu, Busan, and Gwangju. Although 2,376 members of the prosecution applied for special appointments, 615 withdrew their applications, leaving a final count of 1,761 applicants, which is 61.3% of the available positions.
However, not all applicants will be appointed. The government plans to conduct competitive hiring for police officers, lawyers, accountants, and patent attorneys, as well as additional special appointments for prosecution members.
Kim must unify personnel with different investigative experiences and reporting systems into a single organization. He will need to establish criteria and procedures for transferring ongoing prosecution cases to ensure continuity in investigations, as well as finalize appointments for the agency's deputy head and the six regional heads.
Kim's stance on prosecutorial reform is expected to be a contentious issue during the confirmation hearing. He has publicly stated that the prosecution should retain its supplementary investigative powers. He also participated in a statement by national prosecutors calling for reconsideration when then-Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae suspended Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl's duties in November 2020.
On September 7, while on a state visit to France, President Lee Jae-myung decided to nominate Kim, following a recommendation from Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-joong. The Blue House cited Kim's investigative experience and organizational management skills as reasons for his nomination.
A member of the 28th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, Kim has served as the chief prosecutor of the Chuncheon District Prosecutors' Office, head of the Criminal Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, and deputy chief prosecutor at the Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office. He is currently a representative attorney at the law firm Apex. Following the National Assembly's confirmation hearing, he will be appointed by the president.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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