Four Officials, Including Yoo Seung-ryeol, Cited as Candidates for Police Commissioner

As the police announced four candidates for promotion to Senior Superintendent General on the 12th, the contours of the next police commissioner candidates to fill the 1-year and 8-month leadership vacuum have emerged. The candidates for promotion are Yoo Seung-ryeol, 55, Senior Superintendent General for Investigation Planning and Coordination at the National Investigation Bureau; Koh Beom-seok, 56, Chief of the Jeonnam Provincial Police Agency; Kim Jong-cheol, 56, Chief of the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency; and Ko Pyeong-gi, 57, Chief of the Jeju Provincial Police Agency.

The Senior Superintendent General rank is the second-highest in the police organization, held by only seven officials, including the Deputy Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, the Chief of the National Investigation Bureau, the Chiefs of the Seoul, Gyeonggi Southern, Incheon, and Busan Provincial Police Agencies, and the President of the National Police University. Since the Commissioner General, who holds the rank of Chief Superintendent General, must be appointed from among the Senior Superintendents General, these four nominees are immediately considered the top candidates for the next commissioner.

The backgrounds of the nominees vary. Senior Superintendent Yoo, a graduate of the 10th class of the National Police University (NPU), previously served as the NPA spokesperson and Chief of the Security Intelligence Bureau. Despite having served at the Blue House under the Park Geun-hye and Yoon Suk-yeol administrations, he was recognized for his capabilities by the progressive administration and was selected for promotion. Chief Koh, an NPU 8th-class graduate, is a representative security expert who served at the Counter-Terrorism Center of the Office for Government Policy Coordination and as Chief of the Seoul Police Agency's Mobile Bureau. Chief Ko Pyeong-gi, an NPU 9th-class graduate, has served in key positions related to crime prevention. Chief Kim Jong-cheol, the only non-NPU graduate among the candidates, having entered as an officer candidate, is touted as the strongest candidate, leveraging his experience at the Blue House under the Moon Jae-in administration and his secondment to the National Government Policy Coordination Council immediately following the launch of the current administration.

A reshuffle of high-ranking positions also appears inevitable. Among the six incumbent Senior Superintendents General, some are expected to begin retirement procedures alongside this personnel reshuffle. The incumbent Senior Superintendents General are Yoo Jae-seong, Deputy Commissioner General of the NPA; Hong Seok-gi, Chief of the National Investigation Bureau; Park Jeong-bo, Chief of the Seoul Provincial Police Agency; Hwang Chang-seon, Chief of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency; Han Chang-hoon, Chief of the Incheon Provincial Police Agency; and Kim Seong-hee, Chief of the Busan Provincial Police Agency. The position of President of the National Police University has already been vacant since April when the former president, Kim Seong-hee, moved to the Busan Police Agency. With the announcement of nine candidates for promotion to Superintendent General as well, the scale of the personnel reshuffle is expected to expand further.

The vacancy began in December 2024. The top post became vacant when former Commissioner General Cho Ji-ho was suspended from duties on December 12 of that year due to his involvement in the December 3 martial law declaration. Following former Deputy Commissioner General Lee Ho-young, Deputy Commissioner General Yoo has been serving as the acting head, and following the Constitutional Court's impeachment decision last December, the Commissioner General's position officially became vacant. This marks the first time the top security post has remained vacant for nearly two years.

This is not the first time expectations for the appointment of a commissioner have risen. When the list of prospective Senior Superintendents was released in April last year, followed by personnel reshuffles affecting 10 Senior Superintendents General and Superintendents General, there were observations that the government had begun verifying candidates. At the time, Deputy Commissioner General Yoo, former National Investigation Bureau Chief Park Sung-ju, and Seoul Police Agency Chief Park Jeong-bo were mentioned as potential candidates, but the selection ultimately fell through.

Consequently, there are concerns both inside and outside the police force that the appointment may be delayed again. There are predictions that the acting leadership system under Deputy Commissioner General Yoo will be maintained ahead of the reorganization of prosecution agencies in October, which includes the abolition of the Prosecutor's Office and the establishment of the Serious Crime Investigation Office. The possibility of an extension of the acting system gained strength after Deputy Commissioner General Yoo was appointed to lead the task force for follow-up measures on the Criminal Procedure Act earlier this month. With strong arguments that a formal chief is necessary to resolve pressing investigation issues, the decision on the commissioner appointment appears likely to hinge on the government's reorganization schedule.