The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 115

Winter (2)

– Was the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office truly a hotbed of corruption?

– On January 4, 2021, arrest warrants were issued for nine prosecutors who had been transferred to Seoul. Five were from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, and one each from the Northern, Eastern, Southern District Prosecutors’ Offices, and the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office. They were suspected of various corruption offenses. The investigation was conducted under the direction of the Inspector’s Office in cooperation with the Special Investigation Department of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. Once again, Prosecutor Choi Seo-joon, the celebrated figure of the prosecution, was said to have uncovered their corruption. Surprisingly, all nine prosecutors who received arrest warrants were from the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office. Nine out of the ten prosecutors who came to Seoul from the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office through the 2021 New Year’s transfer were implicated in corruption. What’s particularly noteworthy is that Choi Seo-joon spearheaded this case as well. Given that none of the cases Choi Seo-joon has handled have ever failed, a guilty verdict seems highly probable this time too. Consequently, public trust in the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office is plummeting. Some netizens are commending the one prosecutor out of ten who didn’t receive an arrest warrant, but suspicions linger that he might also be involved in corruption, even if the Special Investigation Department hasn’t disclosed it. Only the prosecutor himself would know the truth. Currently, both the Special Investigation Department of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, where Choi Seo-joon is the chief prosecutor, and the Inspector’s Office of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office are receiving reports of prosecutorial corruption. You can report information by contacting 02-3XX-24X3. ……(Omission)……. Many citizens are wondering how the full extent of the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office’s corruption will be revealed.

– WK Daily Reporter Park Soo-hyung

“You damn bastards!”

Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil crumpled the newspaper and threw it down.

“It’s a mess because I’m not there! They’ve been playing dirty!”

Unable to contain his anger, he even reached for his nameplate.

“Please, Chief Prosecutor, calm down,” Chief Kang Joong-sik, ever the viper, said, hurriedly grabbing his arm. Only then did Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil, trembling, put the nameplate down.

“Hoo.”

He took a deep breath and finally composed himself before speaking.

“So, have you grasped the facts?”

“Ah, that’s…….”

Chief Kang Joong-sik replied with a miserable expression.

“It seems to be proceeding exactly as Choi Seo-joon intended.”

“Damn it!”

Bang!

Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil slammed his fist on the desk.

He was furious that the Inspector’s Office under his supposed control had bypassed the chain of command and received orders directly from the Minister of Justice, and that they were succeeding so spectacularly.

However, he couldn’t argue with the Minister of Justice, who outranked him.

The Minister of Justice was none other than Kim Seok-won, the man who had ousted him.

In the end, his anger was directed at the easiest target, Chief Kang Joong-sik.

“How did we get screwed like this? This means they had investigated everything before we even left the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office.”

“The truth is… remember the Western District Prosecutors’ Office I raided last time?”

The moment he mentioned the Western District Prosecutors’ Office, Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil’s brow furrowed.

Chief Kang Joong-sik flinched and spoke with difficulty.

“It seems that a guy named Jung Hyun-woo, who was in the Western District Prosecutors’ Office at the time, was unfortunately transferred to the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office. He investigated our network of prosecutors in Busan and handed the information over to Choi Seo-joon.”

“That guy went to the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office?”

“Yes.”

“When we crushed the Western District Prosecutors’ Office, I told you to make sure they were all unable to recover.”

“……I’m sorry.”

Chief Kang Joong-sik bowed his head.

It was his mistake.

At the time, he had just achieved a major success after arriving in Seoul, leading him to believe that Seoul was nothing special and becoming arrogant.

He dismissed them all or sent them to undesirable postings like Gangwon-do or Jeju-do, making it difficult for them to return, but he failed to realize that only Jung Hyun-woo’s appointment was changed to the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office mid-process.

Even so, he never imagined that Jung Hyun-woo would side with Choi Seo-joon.

Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil clenched his fist on the desk and spoke in a very cold voice.

“Chief Kang.”

“Yes, Chief Prosecutor.”

“That’s two strikes.”

Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil’s fierce eyes were fixed on Chief Kang Joong-sik, the viper.

“You were defeated by Choi Seo-joon last time, and you’ve repeated it.”

“I will make sure this never happens again.”

Chief Kang Joong-sik, the viper, swallowed his fear and said.

However, Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil’s voice was devoid of emotion, radiating only a frozen aura.

“There is no third time. It’s over then.”

“Yes. I understand.”

“How much more time do you need to crush Choi Seo-joon?”

Chief Kang Joong-sik swallowed hard and thought frantically.

He had succeeded in finding a potential weakness related to Choi Seo-joon’s corruption.

However, the investigation wasn’t yet complete.

Ideally, two months.

But if he told Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil that he needed two months now, he’d likely be dismissed before the time was up.

While he was racking his brains, Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil spoke first.

“Resolve it before January ends.”

Within January.

Today is January 11th.

That leaves only three weeks, including today.

However, Kang Joong-sik couldn’t complain or refuse.

The moment he displeased Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil, his career as a prosecutor would be over, regardless of any chance for revenge.

He would have to resign and become a lawyer.

He had only one choice.

“I will resolve it within the period you mentioned.”

Whether it’s a hit or miss, he had to take the risk.

He couldn’t play it safe.

He had to confront Choi Seo-joon head-on and see if it resulted in a strike or a hit.

Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil looked at Chief Kang Joong-sik cynically.

“Don’t disappoint me.”

***

– Corruption in the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office… Are those who came to Seoul before clean?

– As the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office is exposed as a hotbed of corruption, suspicions are growing about Kang Joong-sik, the chief of the Public Security Department who came to Seoul earlier, and Park Jae-pil, the chief prosecutor of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office. According to an anonymous source within the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office, all of the prosecutors identified as the ‘Gang of Nine’ were part of ‘Chief Prosecutor Park Jae-pil’s inner circle.’ The most prominent figure among them is Kang Joong-sik, the current chief of the Public Security Department. If the lower ranks are corrupt, the upper ranks couldn’t have been unaware. If they knew and turned a blind eye, it’s reasonable to infer that the upper ranks were also corrupt, or even more so. It has been exactly one year since the two prosecutors were appointed to Seoul, and it’s questionable whether there were any improprieties during this period. ……(Omission)……. We hope that the public’s desire for transparency in the upper ranks will not be disappointed.

– Political District No. 1 Reporter Lim Yu-na

“I think those Busan hicks are out of their minds.”

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Lee Doo-hyung said with a very satisfied expression after reading the article.

“Of course. How dare those country bumpkins come to Seoul and cause trouble? They should just cower and stay in their place.”

He was completely isolating the two Busan prosecutors, capitalizing on the scandal surrounding the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office.

It would be great if a tip came in, but even if it didn’t, it was satisfying to have undermined those guys.

“I think we should have a celebratory drink.”

A smile naturally appeared at Prosecutor Jang Ha-young’s words, but he shook his head.

“It’s too early. There’s a saying that it’s not over till it’s over. Stay focused and proceed until it’s finished.”

“I understand.”

“Ms. Seol-ha.”

He called Yoon Seol-ha, who was in the corner, and asked.

“If we proceed at the current pace, can we hand it over to the Public Prosecution Department by next week?”

“Yes. The evidence in the case is so clear that there’s nothing more to investigate. At the earliest, next Friday. At the latest, we can hand it over by Tuesday of the following week.”

“Good. Let’s all proceed as is.”

“Yes!”

He got up from his seat, listening to the energetic replies of the prosecutors and investigators.

***

“Thank you for your hard work.”

I met PD [Production Director] Song Jae-hoon and reporter Park Soo-hyung after a long time and clinked glasses with them.

The location was an officetel [a building with both office and residential units] that I use for meetings.

“Oh, it was nothing.”

“You worked hard on the press conference.”

I scratched my head, feeling a little embarrassed.

I had just finished the investigation into the nine prosecutors of the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office a few hours ago and held a press conference to announce that all of them would be handed over to the Public Prosecution Department.

In other words, I had effectively cut off all of Chief Kang Joong-sik’s support.

All he had left were a few prosecutors belonging to the Public Security Department and a small number of chief prosecutors from the so-called ‘No. 2 line’ who had allied with him.

Of course, I had even received intelligence that the chief prosecutors from the ‘No. 2 line’ were now distancing themselves from Chief Kang Joong-sik, rather than considering him one of their own.

If he just manages to deflect the attack he’s currently planning against me and handles it well, he might just destroy himself.

According to Song Hyun-sung, the deputy chief prosecutor of the Inspector’s Office, after this case concluded, he was summoned to the High Prosecutor’s Office several times and severely reprimanded, so loudly that it could be heard outside the office.

Tsk tsk.

He should have picked someone else to mess with.

How long had we been drinking? While I was refilling reporter Park Soo-hyung’s glass, the liquor in my bottle ran out.

“Oh, the liquor’s out.”

“I’ll buy some.”

“No. I have a bottle of whiskey I received as a gift last time. Let’s open that and drink it.”

I got up and headed to the kitchen.

The liquor I received as a gift from Assemblyman [Member of the National Assembly] Hwang Cheol-yong.

I think I put it somewhere in the cupboard.

After searching for a while, I found a bottle of high-end whiskey with an orange glow.

I immediately prepared straight glasses and on-the-rocks glasses and returned to the living room. PD Song Jae-hoon’s cell phone rang, and he answered it.

“Yes, hello?”

It wasn’t that late, so I assumed it was a normal call and didn’t think much of it.

However, what I overheard next was anything but normal.

“You have something to report?”

PD Song Jae-hoon said with a puzzled look.

“The report should be made to our broadcasting station number, not this one… Yes?”

He frowned and asked again.

“You want to report directly to me?”

A direct report to the PD…….

As he started to move to another place to answer the phone, I quickly handed him a Post-it note and a pen and said.

“It’s okay, answer the phone here. Use this to take notes.”

He mouthed ‘thank you’ and immediately picked up the pen.