Vice Justice Minister Lee Yong-gu offered to resign Friday, after he was embroiled in a controversy over unpunished assault against a taxi driver.

The justice ministry announced the news, without detailing reasons for his abrupt resignation.

In a short statement sent to reporters, Lee said he was resigning because he believed the ministry "badly" needed a "new worker" who could help the ministry to reinvent itself for the remaining one year of the Moon Jae-in government.

He was appointed to the position on Dec. 2, the first appointee without a prosecutor background in 60 years.

Soon after Lee was appointed vice minister, however, allegations were raised that he got away free following the altercation in early November.

Lee, who was a lawyer at the time, allegedly grabbed the driver by the collar in an intoxicated state when the man tried to wake him up after arriving at his home in southern Seoul.

Police were called to the scene at that time, and Lee was allowed to go home after his identity was confirmed. Police closed the case later without booking Lee after the taxi driver objected to his punishment.

Amid growing anger over his assault going unpunished, he offered an apology in December.

"I am deeply sorry for causing concern to the people with a personal matter," he wrote in a statement sent to reporters. "I also apologize again to the taxi driver."

Last week, prosecutors called him in for questioning for the first time since the incident took place in November. They have also been looking into whether the initial police investigation into the case followed due process. (Yonhap)