Why did prosecutors request again arrest warrant in sex scandal?

A court`s refusal to issue an arrest warrant Monday for a prosecutor accused of having sex with a criminal suspect he was investigating has prompted criticism that prosecutors forcibly applied legal principles.

Investigators again requested a warrant for the prosecutor Tuesday without additional investigation to complement the loopholes, inviting more criticism that prosecutors are trying to punish one of their own who tainted their reputations. With calls rising for leading prosecutors to stop down, prosecutors are trying to close the case.

Wie Hyeon-seok, chief judge for warrant issuance at the Seoul District Court, said Monday, "We can blame the prosecutor for moral reasons, but there is considerable speculation whether the bribery charges were set in," in explaining why the warrant was refused.

A bribery charge is made if something was clearly pledged or delivered in return, and the court ruled that the prosecutor’s sex with the suspect could not be seen as a bribe in return for clemency. The woman needed to have intent to give a favor for a bribery charge to be made, but prosecutors said they will not charge her, meaning that the charge was a mistake in the first place. Prosecutors also could not apply the charge of getting sex through abuse of power because the two people consented to the sex, and thus sought a bribery charge.

A prosecution official told a news briefing, "According to a recording, the acts were reciprocal and the woman`s statement that she was unable to protest is hard to believe. I cannot understand how the arrest warrant was rejected," adding, "Based on the analysis of the recording, the prosecutor was trying to help the woman get consent for a robbery case at his office. There was a direct conversation on how to resolve the matter at a motel." The official, however, declined to say why prosecutors charged her if she had the intent to bribe.

ceric@donga.com