Acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok, who faces calls to step down from within the agency following a decision not to appeal a ruling in the Daejang-dong case, did not respond to related questions from the local media as he arrived for work on Wednesday.

Noh's silence comes amid speculation that the acting chief prosecutor may make a statement about what he intends to do next upon returning from his day off the previous day.

Allegations regarding the justice ministry's interference have escalated following revelations that the acting chief had spoken on the phone with Vice Justice Minister Lee Jin-soo just before deciding against the appeal.

At a closed-door meeting with senior prosecutors at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office(SPO) Monday, Noh reportedly said the vice minister had expressed concern over the appeal and mentioned that he could request the justice minister to exercise authority to direct an investigation.

The vice minister has denied Noh's reported claims.