Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho said he never opposed appealing a ruling in the high-profile Daejang-dong corruption case and did not discuss the matter with the presidential office. 

The minister made the remarks on Wednesday during a plenary session of the parliamentary special committee on budget and accounts. 

Jung also denied instructing Vice Justice Minister Lee Jin-soo to halt the appeal, saying that if he had intended to give guidance, he would have done so in writing.

Jung criticized various prosecutors' subsequent protests against the government's decision, calling them “highly undesirable."

The minister pointed out that prosecutors had remained silent when former President Yoon Suk Yeol was released from detention in a manner contrary to custom.

Addressing concerns that halting the appeal could hinder the recovery of illicit profits tied to the Daejang-dong case, the minister said the government would do its best to secure the funds through civil litigation.