Seoul: Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung on Monday nominated a former senior prosecutor to serve as the inaugural head of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency set to launch next month. Kim Ji-yong, former chief of the criminal affairs department at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, was chosen as the final nominee to lead the new agency from a shortlist of four candidates, according to Yun.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Yun will recommend Kim to President Lee Jae Myung, who will appoint him to the post after he undergoes a parliamentary confirmation hearing. If appointed, he will serve a two-year term. The new agency, designed to partly replace the prosecution service's functions, is scheduled to launch on Oct. 2 as part of sweeping reform that strips prosecutors of their independent and supplementary investigative powers.
The agency will investigate major crimes in seven categories -- corruption, economic crimes, defense acquisition, drug offenses, crimes against state security, cybercrimes and offenses involving distortion of the law.