Kim Jong-cheol, head of the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency, has been appointed as the Deputy Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA). Ko Beom-seok, former head of the Jeonnam Provincial Police Agency, has been named the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, while Yoo Seung-ryol, Investigation Planning and Coordination Officer at the National Investigation Headquarters (NIH), has been appointed to lead the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency.

The KNPA announced late on the 1st that it carried out a senior personnel reshuffle for the second half of 2026, targeting senior superintendent generals (chian-jeonggam), the second-highest rank in the police force, and superintendent generals (chian-gam), the rank immediately below. The appointments affected 3 chian-jeonggam officials and 25 chian-gam officers.

Kim Jong-cheol, who will serve as the acting head of the KNPA due to a vacancy, Ko Beom-seok, who will direct security and major case investigations in the capital, and Yoo Seung-ryol were all promoted to the rank of chian-jeonggam in this round. The rank of chian-jeonggam serves as the candidate pool for the Commissioner General, the highest police rank (chian-chonggam).

In the chian-gam reshuffle, Kim Seong-jae, head of police intelligence for the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, was named the spokesperson for the KNPA. Song Yu-cheol, head of administrative affairs for the Seoul agency, and Yoo Yun-jong, head of the Ulsan Provincial Police Agency, were tapped as the KNPA's Planning and Coordination Officer and Personnel and Human Resources Planning Officer, respectively.

Within the NIH, which directs investigations nationwide, Kim Kwang-sik, chief of the Seoul Gwanak Police Station, was appointed as the Investigation Planning and Coordination Officer, and Oh Seung-jin, head of the investigation department at the Seoul agency, became the Investigation Bureau Chief. Song Byeong-seon, head of the metropolitan investigation unit at the Gyeongbu Provincial Police Agency, was named the head of investigation for the Seoul agency.

Regarding the reshuffle, the KNPA stated, "We have fully applied the 'Hwangpi-je' (regional restriction system) to all provincial and metropolitan police agency heads." The agency explained that home-region assignments were excluded to strengthen fairness and accountability in police operations. "We replaced 14 out of the 18 regional police chiefs (78%) and turned over 81% of all chian-gam positions," the agency added.

The KNPA also noted that it "deployed two specialized investigative personnel to key positions within the NIH to elevate investigative accountability following amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act and to reinforce field investigation capabilities."

Looking ahead, the KNPA stated that subsequent personnel actions will continue to refine the HR system by expanding the regional restriction system to major positions—including audit, inspection, and human rights officers at regional agencies—to further strengthen trust and fairness in police administration.

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