The new Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials(CIO) has decided to send back to the prosecution the travel ban case involving former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-ui.

On its social media account Friday, the CIO said although in principle it should investigate the case as the prosecution is involved, the new agency is not yet ready to start up full operation, citing it needs another three to four weeks to complete hiring prosecutors and investigators.

While the CIO had considered having prosecutors dispatched to the agency or having the police conduct the probe, it said it arrived at this conclusion to guarantee fairness in the investigation. It will take over once a team at the CIO is ready.

Incumbent senior prosecutors, including the head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, face allegations that they intervened in the initial investigation. As such, the CIO had received the relevant records on the case from the prosecution earlier this month.

The case centers on accusations that the Ministry of Justice and prosecutors either overlooked or participated in the alleged illegal process of imposing an exit travel ban on the former vice justice minister in 2019.