Dec. 22 (Asia Today) -- South Korea's National Investigation Headquarters, a police unit sometimes described as a Korean equivalent of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, is facing criticism over whether it can conduct independent, accountable probes involving powerful figures after transferring a politically sensitive case to another agency.
The National Police Agency recently moved a case involving allegations of a biased investigation linked to the Unification Church and Special Prosecutor Min Jung-ki to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, according to the report.
The controversy stems from claims that the special prosecutor learned in August of allegations that current and former lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party received money and valuables from the Unification Church but did not pursue the matter, the report said. The special prosecutor said the allegations were not investigated because they were "not directly related to Mrs. Kim Keon-hee," it added.
Critics said the decision appeared selective because special prosecutor teams have previously examined suspicions beyond those explicitly listed as targets under the special prosecutor law, the report said.
