By Lee Jon-young

 

Since taking office late last year, Daejeon Police Chief Chung Yong-geun has significantly increased the number of investigative officers to ensure that frontline officers are able to protect the safety of the public. Ahead of National Police Day, which falls on Oct. 21, the Diplomacy Journal had a special interview with him about his achievements, the nature of policing in Daejeon, and the recent reorganization of the police force. 

 

 

The following is the full-text of the special interview with Daejeon Police Chief Chung Yong-geun by Chairman-Publisher Lee Jon-young of Diplomacy Journal.

 

Question: Please tell us about your impressions of policing activities as chief of the Daejeon Metropolitan Police.  

 

Answer: It has been 10 months since I was appointed as the 19th Daejeon Metropolitan Police Chief on December 30 last year. After joining the police force in 1987, I mainly worked in the headquarters and the metropolitan area, and I remember working as the head of the crime prevention patrol at the Dongbu police station when I was an inspector in 1997. When I was appointed as the Daejeon Metropolitan Police Commissioner, I started my work with a sense of mission and responsibility to be responsible for the security of Daejeon. 

 

What I felt during my 10-month tenure was that Daejeon's security was maintained thanks to the citizens of Daejeon who have a high level of civic awareness and the unremitting efforts of Daejeon Police colleagues in the field of policing. At the time of my inauguration, I promised the 1.45 million citizens of Daejeon that the Daejeon Police would fulfill its role as a "safety guard to protect the daily lives of citizens" and become a "respected and trusted police force". We will continue to do our best for the safety and happiness of our citizens without losing our initial resolution."

 

Q: Please tell us about your achievements in field-oriented policing.

 

A: Due to the nature of police work, the field of policing is of utmost importance. The basis of police work is to always be with citizens in the field. In order for the frontline police officers, who are in charge of the frontline, to perform their duties confidently and in accordance with the law and principles, we have considered various support measures to listen to their concerns and solve their difficulties. In my first greeting after taking office, I significantly increased the number of personnel in the police department's investigation department (26 persons), which had complained of an increase in workload after the police accountability investigation system, to create conditions for them to focus on their work. 

 

In addition, we increased the number of 'Emergency Hospitalization Support Team' personnel from two to four, which was implemented nationwide in recognition of its achievements after its first implementation in Daejeon last year, and expanded the operating hours to 24 hours to alleviate some of the difficulties experienced in the field. We actively encouraged and rewarded members with outstanding achievements, and more than doubled the number of special officers from last year to enhance the vitality of the field. In particular, to strengthen the field response capabilities of district offices and police boxes, which are frontline policing sites, we held a local police teamwork contest and activated permanent training centered on patrol team leaders."

 

Q: Please tell us about the characteristics of policing during your time as the Chungbuk Police Commissioner and as the Daejeon Police Commissioner.

 

A: While provincial police departments such as Chungbuk have a mix of urban and rural areas, Daejeon has all six police stations located in the city center, making it easier to promote effective, consistent, and homogenized policing. Daejeon has the highest proportion of single-person households among the 17 metropolitan local governments in the country, so crime prevention measures are of particular interest. In addition, the number of traffic fatalities, which has been steadily managed in line with Daejeon's status as a transportation center, is expected to increase this year due to a surge in traffic volume caused by the lifting of social distancing. In addition, we are implementing traffic safety measures in collaboration with related organizations such as Daejeon City and Korea Expressway Corporation by improving transportation facilities and strengthening traffic safety education and promotion."

 

Q: What are your thoughts on the recent police reorganization? 

 

A: It is not possible to judge the right or wrong of a reorganization that has not yet been implemented. The main direction of this reorganization is to strengthen frontline policing capabilities by redeploying field personnel to focus on crime prevention and response. Specifically, it is to respond more quickly and effectively to crimes that are expanding, such as the establishment of criminal mobile units, mobile patrol units, and a wide-area information system, and to operate the police force flexibly to meet rapidly changing security needs. 

 

We understand that there are many concerns about the lack of manpower and workload on the front line because the government is reorganizing without recruiting more people. However, we believe that this reorganization is unlikely to lead to manpower shortages or work overloads as feared by the frontline, as the reorganization is not simply reducing the workforce, but reducing administrative and management personnel through merger and consolidation of similar and overlapping functions and reassigning them to the field. In the future, we will continue to complement any problems that may arise through internal opinion gathering. 

 

Q: Please tell us about Daejeon Police's activities to eradicate vicious crimes.

 

A: The Daejeon Metropolitan Police has been conducting special security activities for two months since August 4 to alleviate the anxiety of citizens regarding the recent incidents of strange synchronized crimes at Sinlim Station and Seohyeon Station. The police have selected 71 locations with a large number of people, including hypermarkets, train stations, terminals, and subway stations, and deployed an average of 430 police officers per day to conduct visible patrols to prevent crimes. 

 

In particular, special security activities were carried out during Chuseok, a long holiday, resulting in a significant decrease in 112 calls and five major crimes, violence, and theft compared to last year's Chuseok. In addition, the police arrested and repatriated a suspected robber who fled to Vietnam through persistent investigation and active international cooperation. Crime prevention activities are limited to the efforts of the police alone, so we are also working to strengthen community policing activities. Through active collaboration with citizens and local governments, we secured a budget of about 1.11 billion won for crime prevention infrastructure.

 

Q: Do you have any solutions to the crime of voice phishing?

 

A: Voice phishing is still a malicious crime that causes great damage to the common people, and it is difficult to recover from the damage once it occurs, so the Daejeon police have been actively working on prevention by cracking down on various communication and financial means used for voice phishing crimes and promoting citizens' awareness of damage prevention. As a result, the number of cases of voice phishing in Daejeon last month decreased by 12.9% and the amount of damage decreased by 5.1% compared to September last year. Thanks to the reports of financial institutions and the collaboration of citizens, it was possible to prevent damage worth 1.243 billion won by last month. We continue to carry out customized prevention publicity activities in cooperation with various institutions and organizations such as financial institutions, local governments, and the media, and are conducting special crackdowns on the 'Top 8 Methods of Telecommunications and Financial Fraud' twice a year in the first and second half of this year to prevent criminal activities in advance. 

 

Q: The number of drug offenders is the highest ever, what are your thoughts? 

 

A: Drug crimes in Daejeon are characterized by anonymity and non-face-to-face, and as the number of drug transactions using the Internet increases, drug crimes in Daejeon are also showing an increasing trend. Therefore, since February, Daejeon police has been operating a 10-function TF team to crack down on drug crimes. As a result, the Daejeon police have arrested a total of 282 people by last month, surpassing last year's total of 207 people by far. Among them, the number of 20-somethings increased by 2.4 times compared to the same period last year, and the number of 30-somethings and teens increased by 1.4 times each, indicating that drug-related crimes are spreading, especially among the MZ generation (teens to 30-somethings). 

 

Accordingly, the police are not only cracking down on narcotics, but also conducting drug crime prevention education for middle and high school students, out-of-school youth, and foreign students in Daejeon to instill awareness of narcotics through prevention and promotion activities. In the future, we plan to create a safe Daejeon without drug crimes through high-intensity crackdowns and prevention activities to combat drug crimes that continue to threaten the safety of citizens.

 

Q: What are your thoughts on the healthy organizational culture and communication of the Daejeon Metropolitan Police? 

 

A: After working as a member of the Daejeon Police and as a commissioner, I realized that the Daejeon Police is doing better than any other police agency in any city. A vibrant organizational culture based on respect and consideration for each other, communication and harmony has been established, resulting in good relationships among employees and good cooperation between departments in the execution of work. This is externally evidenced by the fact that we have been ranked first in the national police officer job satisfaction survey of city and provincial police agencies for five consecutive years from 2018 to last year. In addition, although Daejeon Police maintains a healthy organizational culture, we are not complacent and are implementing various measures to further increase the pride and morale of the field so that we can provide quality policing activities to citizens. 

 

Q: Finally, what would you like to say to citizens and colleagues on the occasion of the 78th National Police Day? 

 

A: It is thanks to the citizens who have always supported the police organization for the past 78 years that it has been able to grow by the side of the citizens. The Daejeon Police will continue to fulfill its role of securing the safety of citizens and listen to the small voices of citizens to meet their needs and expectations. I call on citizens to actively participate in our police activities to create a safe Daejeon for all. Please continue to support the Daejeon Police with your unwavering interest and affection. 

 

I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to all members of the Daejeon Police who are fulfilling their noble mission of protecting the lives, bodies, and property of citizens. I will sincerely listen to the voices of my colleagues so that they can perform their duties confidently in accordance with the law and principles in the field of policing, and I will spare no effort to provide all the support I can as the chief. I will do my best to create the kind of security that citizens want and share with them. I wish all 1.45 million Daejeon citizens and 3,600 Daejeon police officers good health and happiness as they enjoy the deepening fall colors."