‘버닝썬’ 이후 7년간…경찰 ‘사적접촉’ 신고 149건, 징계·조사는 0건

A reporting system against private contact between retired police officers and private parties was introduced to prevent such interactions, but no disciplinary action or investigation was taken against any of the reported incidents over the past seven years since its implementation. The system has been criticized for its lack of effectiveness, as it mainly focused on controlling encounters with questionable individuals rather than preventing inappropriate interactions altogether.

A report from the National Strength of the People Office, obtained by lawmaker Park Chang-won, revealed that there were 149 cases of retired police officers having contact with their former colleagues through the private contact reporting center between 2019 and July 2025. The number of cases reported each year varied, with 2 in 2019, 3 in 2020, 42 in 2021, 21 in 2022, 12 in 2023, 27 in 2024, and 29 in 2025.

The police center operates under the principle of prohibiting contact between individuals involved in incidents and external parties, as stipulated in Article 5-2-5 of the Public Official Behavior Code. The center established the private contact reporting center in August 2019 to encourage retired police officers and police-related brokers to report such incidents.

However, when questioned about disciplinary or investigative actions taken against the reported cases, the police center stated that they do not take separate measures. This suggests that only inappropriate encounters were reported, leading to the conclusion that the system primarily serves as a preventative measure.