Military Police Urgently Arrest Private A During Suspect Interrogation

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Wondara] The military police have urgently arrested active-duty soldier A, an accomplice of Jo Joo-bin (24).

An Army official said in a phone call with Asia Economy on the 3rd, "We secured Private A's custody from the morning and were investigating him as a witness," adding, "During the investigation, the facts of the charges became concrete, so he was urgently arrested around 5:15 PM." He continued, "Since Private A is a soldier, the military police will conduct the investigation," and added, "We will cooperate with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in the investigation."

Private A, serving in a military unit in Gyeonggi Province, is reported to be 'Igiya,' one of the three co-operators revealed by Jo's lawyer.

The Cyber Safety Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency stated, "From around 9:30 AM, for about seven hours, we conducted a search and seizure of evidence such as Private A's mobile phone at a military unit in Gyeonggi Province where A is serving," and explained, "If the suspect is a soldier, jurisdiction lies with the military court, but with the cooperation of the Ministry of National Defense, the police can investigate."

Previously, Jo's lawyer, Kim Ho-je, revealed, "Besides Jo, there were three other administrators of the 'Doctor's Room' with nicknames 'Buddha,' 'Praying Mantis,' and 'Igiya.'"

The police plan to examine, based on the secured materials, to what extent Private A participated in operating the Doctor's Room and how much he assisted Jo's crimes. In particular, since there are claims that the user with the chat name Igiya was active in the Telegram chatroom until recently, they plan to investigate whether he participated in the chatroom even while serving in the military.

Meanwhile, the police also applied for an arrest warrant for former social service worker Choi Mo (26), who is suspected of illegally accessing personal information while working at a community center in Seoul on the same day and providing information on 17 individuals to Jo. Choi underwent a pre-trial detention hearing (warrant review) at the Seoul Central District Court in the morning on charges including violation of the Personal Information Protection Act. The decision on detention is expected to be made late in the afternoon.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.