Acting National Police Agency Commissioner Yoo Jae-seong will return early from a United Nations police summit in the United States amid controversy over a murder investigation in Gwangju.
The acting national police chief will cut short his trip to attend the United Nations Chiefs of Police Summit from July 5-11 and return home on Friday. The decision follows public concern over the police handling of a May murder case in Gwangju involving suspect Jang Yoon-gi, whose father is a local police officer.
Multiple officers at Gwangsan Police Station were stripped of duties and placed under investigation for allegedly leaking information and destroying evidence. Prosecutors raided the station and the father's residence on Tuesday.
Police sought an arrest warrant for the lead investigator on suspicions of misconduct. The Gwangju District Court approved the warrant on Wednesday, citing risks of evidence destruction and flight. A special probe team secured testimony that the team leader instructed colleagues to leave cable ties untouched in the suspect's vehicle, items later recovered after the father removed them.
