(2nd LD) Top court upholds acquittal of ex-Seoul police chief

(ATTN: UPDATES with comments by lead investigator in paras 9-11; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, Jan. 29 (Yonhap) -- Upholding a lower court ruling, the top court on Thursday acquitted a former Seoul police chief of charges that he soft-pedaled a police probe into a high-profile election-meddling scandal.

The scandal centers around allegations that the state intelligence agency spearheaded an online smear campaign against rival candidates of President Park Geun-hye, the then ruling party candidate, during the 2012 presidential election.

Kim Yong-pan, the now former head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA), was indicted in June 2013 on charges of ordering his subordinates to cover up the evidence incriminating the National Intelligence Service (NIS).

Charges against Kim were brought to attention after a lead investigator on the case told the media she felt pressured by her superiors, including Kim, to reduce the scale of the investigation.

The Supreme Court, however, said prosecutors had failed to prove his guilt "beyond a reasonable doubt."

"The allegations that Kim made these orders to favor a specific candidate were not proven beyond a reasonable doubt," Justice Shin Yeong-cheol said in the ruling.

Upon hearing the verdict, Kim said he planned to write a book describing the ordeal he'd been through.

"I would not have overcome this roller coaster of emotions had it not been for the people who continued to trust and support me," he told reporters. "I plan to tell who told the truth and who didn't in my book."

The lead investigator who first raised allegations of a police soft-pedaling in 2013 said she was disappointed by the ruling.

"There were clear discrepancies between the preliminary and final reports released by the police, (suggesting there was pressure from the higher-ups)," said Kwon Eun-hui, who is now an opposition lawmaker, in a press release. "I don't understand why the justices made such an irresponsible decision."

Conservative groups have accused her of giving a false testimony, a crime that is punishable only by a prison sentence in South Korea.

Thursday's verdict marked the third and final time Kim was acquitted of the charges. It was also the first Supreme Court trial related to the election scandal.

The then NIS head Won Sei-hoon is currently standing an appellate trial over charges of meddling in politics and the 2012 election.

A lower court found him guilty of the former but not of the latter. A high court ruling is due next Saturday.

Also awaiting Supreme Court rulings are two former NIS employees who blew the whistle on the existence of the online smear campaign, and a police superintendent who allegedly destroyed evidence related to Kim's case.

sojungpark@yna.co.kr
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