Police Arrest Detective for Evidence Tampering in Gwangju Murder Case

Police arrested an unnamed detective in the homicide division of Gwangsan Police Station in Gwangju on Wednesday on charges of colluding with senior inspector Jang to destroy evidence related to allegations that Jang's son participated in the premeditated murder of a high school girl, Yonhap reported.

The alleged collusion came to light while the murder investigation was still underway. The case has since been transferred to prosecutors for review.

The incident has prompted the ruling Democratic Party of Korea to submit an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act that would eliminate prosecutors' authority to supervise police investigations. Under the proposal, police would become the primary investigative authority while prosecutors would be limited to deciding whether to indict cases referred to them.

DPK leadership has reaffirmed its determination to pass the amendment before the party's leadership convention in August.

The party controls the National Assembly. DPK Rep. Kim Nam-hee said the case illustrated the risks of removing oversight. "When some police officers attempt to collude with suspects, as shown in the murder case of the high school girl, and if that happens again, the nation will remain helpless because there will be no effective mechanism to prevent or correct such abuses," Kim said.

DPK lawmaker Hong Kee-won argued that prosecutorial oversight remains necessary to protect vulnerable people who lack the financial means to hire lawyers. Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho has called for additional safeguards to address potential flaws in the proposed system. The main opposition People Power Party opposes the amendment.