Veteran cop named as new police investigation chief

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Veteran cop named as new police investigation chief

Published: 27 Mar. 2023, 16:45 Updated: 27 Mar. 2023, 17:20

Woo Jong-soo, who was named the new head of the National Office of Investigation, holds a press conference at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, in Suwon, Gyeonggi, on Monday. [NEWS1]

Woo Jong-soo, the 55-year-old chief of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, was tapped by President Yoon Suk Yeol as the new head of the National Office of Investigation Monday.

He fills a post left vacant after his predecessor resigned a month ago, just before starting his term, and will take command of some 35,000 police investigation personnel nationwide.

A Seoul native, Woo entered police service in 1999 and served in key positions such as head of Yongsan Police Precinct, investigation bureau chief at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and deputy commissioner general at the National Police Agency.

In 2018, he headed the probe of a high-profile online opinion rigging case known as the Druking scandal. A blogger, known by his alias Druking, was accused of manipulating online comments to generate public opinion favorable to then-President Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party.

Woo also served as a resident police officer at the Korean Embassy in Russia during his 23-year police career.

Last month, Yoon's previous candidate Chung Sun-sin, a prosecutor-turned-lawyer, tendered his resignation just a day ahead of assuming his new post, responding to public backlash after it was revealed his son had bullied one of his schoolmates for months in high school. The son transferred schools while Chung filed an unsuccessful lawsuit against the school.

He replaced Nam Gu-jun, the inaugural police investigation chief whose term expired in February.

Chung's resignation led to criticism over the screening process of candidates by the presidential office and the continued appointment of prosecutors to various unrelated posts.

Both candidates were recommended by National Police Agency Commissioner General Yoon Hee-keun. Yoon reportedly mulled for the past month on a recommendation to the presidential office before deciding on Woo, choosing a candidate from within the police forces instead of an external appointee.

Yoon said Monday Woo has a "high understanding of public security and administration" due to his previous leadership posts at the municipal and provincial level and in the National Police Agency and has a good reputation within the police organization "for his deep understanding of public service and a reasonable work style."

Yoon added Woo is the "right person to lead the organization in a future-oriented way."

The position of the head of the National Office of Investigation symbolizes the independence of the police's investigative powers after reforms to the prosecution's investigation authority, overseeing the heads of municipal and provincial police agencies and precincts.

"I feel a heavy sense of responsibility being charged with an important role," Woo said. "I will do my best with our 35,000 police officers to meet the public's heightened expectations for police investigations."

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]