SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jeena Kim, Kyunghwan Lee, Eunyoung Row and Bochan Kim, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC
age, character, behaviour, intelligence, envi - ronment, relationship to the victim, motive and methods, as well as the aftermath of the crime. The Special Investigation Department within each prosecutor’s office prioritises bribery and corruption cases in its enforcement efforts. National Police Agency The police can also investigate crimes but do not have authority to prosecute. The Bureau of Audit and Inspection (BAI) The BAI is an agency within the executive branch responsible for auditing the accounts of State agencies and overseeing the actions of admin - istrative agencies and public officials. Under the ACRC Act, the BAI has the authority to conduct audits if a public report is filed regarding a viola - tion of the Graft Act. Additionally, public officials are required to report to the BAI or the appropri - ate investigative body if they become aware of corrupt activities by other officials or if they are coerced or offered into engaging in such activi - ties. The BAI will investigate these reports, and, depending on the findings, may discipline the offending official or refer the case to the relevant authority if criminal activity is suspected. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) Anyone who becomes aware of violations of the Graft Act, corrupt activities or violations of the CoC may report them to the ACRC. Upon receiving reports, the ACRC verifies basic information about the reporter, the circumstanc - es of the report and its purpose. It may request the submission of documents that are necessary to verify the authenticity of the reported informa - tion.
If the ACRC deems an audit, investigation or inquiry to be necessary with respect to the reported matters, it must refer them to the BAI, or to the relevant agency depending on the nature of the offence. If the report involves matters requiring investiga - tion/prosecution of a high-ranking public official, the ACRC must file a complaint with the pros - ecutors or with the relevant agency depending on the nature of the offence. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (the “Corruption Investigation Office”) The Corruption Investigation Office was estab - lished in early 2020 with the authority to investi- gate crimes allegedly committed by high-ranking public officials. Such officials include: • the President; • members of the National Assembly; • members of the judiciary; • prosecutors; • certain public officials in political service; • the head of a local government; • the superintendent of education; • police officers above the rank of the superin - tendent; • military officers of the rank of General or higher; and • persons who held the above positions within the last three years. The Corruption Investigation Office may also investigate the family members of high-ranking public officials, including extending investiga - tions to the President’s first cousins. It also holds the power to initiate and continue prosecution against high-ranking public officials. The scope
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