By Ian Werther in News — 13 Mar 2026

Former Korea Forest Service chief forwarded to prosecutors on drunk-driving charges in Bundang

Kim In-ho, the former head of the Korea Forest Service, has been forwarded to prosecutors without detention by Bundang Police on charges of drunk driving and causing injuries in a traffic accident.

The incident occurred on the evening of the 20th in Seongnam’s Bundang District, when Kim, driving a car with a suspended license, allegedly ran a red light and struck a normally moving SUV and a bus. The collision left 15 people hurt, five of whom sustained injuries expected to require two to three weeks of recovery, according to police.

A crew of U.S. Forest Service wildland firefighters led by Pacific Southwest Region Fire Director Shawna Legarza, a former hotshot, makes their way down Colorado Boulevard during the Rose Parade in Pasadena, Calif. on January 1, 2015. — Representative image for context; not directly related to the specific event in this article. License: Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Kim reportedly told investigators that he had been drinking in Jeongja-dong and drove about one kilometer before the crash.

He was dismissed from his post as head of the Korea Forest Service on the 21st of last month due to the DUI incident, six months after his appointment.

Kim, a former professor of environmental landscaping at Shin-Gu University and a member of the Democratic Party’s Policy Committee, had served as the deputy chair of the party’s Policy Committee and as director of the Environmental Education Innovation Institute before being named head of the Forest Service in August of the previous year, under the incoming administration.

U.S. Forest Service Director of Fire and Aviation Management Tom Harbour (far right), a former Fire Chief of the Angeles National Forest, leads a crew of fully outfitted wildland firefighters down Colorado Boulevard in the Rose Parade in Pasadena, Calif. on January 1, 2015. — Representative image for context; not directly related to the specific event in this article. License: Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

The Bundang Police referred the case to prosecutors on the 11th, citing violations of the Road Traffic Act (drunk driving) and the Injury provisions of the Traffic Accident Handling Special Act, while Kim was kept out of detention during the process.

Why this matters beyond Korea: The case highlights accountability for high-ranking public officials in a major Asian economy and underscores South Korea’s enforcement of DUI laws. For U.S. readers, it signals how Korea handles leadership transitions and misconduct within key environmental and regulatory agencies, which can influence policy continuity, climate and forest management, and related regulatory risk for American firms operating in Korea. It also touches on governance and public trust in South Korea’s government, factors that can affect foreign investment, supply chains, and collaboration on regional environmental projects.

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