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A petition to extend the investigation mandate of the Special Prosecutor until all truth is revealed and all guilty parties are punished

On Feb. 16, the investigative team led by Special Prosecutor Park Young-soo submitted a request for a 30-day extension of its period of investigation to Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who is acting president.

“We expect that we won’t be able to conclude all our investigations into the people who are supposed to be investigated according to the Special Prosecutor Act by Feb. 28, when the primary period of the investigation comes to an end. If an early decision is made about whether to approve the extension, the Special Prosecutor will be able to use the period of investigation more efficiently,” said Lee Gyu-cheol, spokesperson for the special prosecutor, during the regular briefing on Feb. 16.

Article 9 of the Special Prosecutor Act states that the Special Prosecutor’s investigation, including a 20-day preparatory period, will last a total of 90 days, which can be extended one time for 30 days. The authority to approve the extension resides with the president, and the Special Prosecutor must request approval for an extension three days before the period of investigation ends.

In regard to why the Special Prosecutor requested an extension so early, 12 days before the primary period of the investigation comes to an end, a source with the Special Prosecutor said, “While there would be nothing wrong with applying three days in advance, there are quite a few people to investigate, and the Special Prosecutor needs to work out in advance whether or not to bring charges against these people.” The source added that the team had also considered the fact that it would likely take a considerable amount of time for Hwang to review the request.

“We will review Special Prosecutor Park Young-soo’s request for an extension of the period of investigation according to the law,” the Office of the Prime Minister said in a statement released on Feb. 16. Considering that Hwang hinted that he is opposed to extending the investigation during an interpellation session before the National Assembly on Feb. 10, when he said that he thinks that “this is not the time to be considering an extension,” attention is focusing on what decision he will make. The opposition parties are currently pushing to extend the Special Prosecutor’s period of investigation by revising the Special Prosecutor Act, but the ruling party, the Liberty Korea Party, is opposed to this.

By Choi Hyun-june and Jung In-hwan, staff reporters

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