Army Decides to Disclose Personal Information of 'Igiyah' Lee Won-ho, Private First Class and Accomplice in Doctor's Room Case... Photo Also Released

Accomplice of the Doctor's Room 'Igiya' Lee Won-ho (Photo by the Army)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] The identity of Private First Class Lee Won-ho (19), known as 'Igiya' and an accomplice of Jo Joo-bin (24, detained and indicted), the operator of the Telegram 'Doctor's Room,' has been disclosed.

On the 28th, the Army held the 'Sexual Violence Crime Identity Disclosure Committee' and announced that it had decided to disclose the personal information of the suspect under investigation by the military prosecution. Accordingly, the real name, age, and photo of Lee Won-ho, who was called 'Igiya' in the Doctor's Room, were revealed.

The Army stated, "The suspect actively participated in recruiting participants for the Doctor's Room and producing and distributing sexually exploitative videos," adding, "Sufficient personal and material evidence has been secured, including the issuance of an arrest warrant," as the reason for the identity disclosure.

The Identity Disclosure Committee, composed of seven members including four external members, said, "We thoroughly discussed the human rights violations that the suspect and their family might suffer due to the disclosure," and "We judged that disclosing the suspect's identity aligns with the public interest in terms of the public's right to know, preventing recidivism of similar crimes, and crime prevention."

On the morning of the 17th, at the Jongno Police Station in Seoul, citizens held a picket demanding severe punishment as the vehicle carrying Kang Hoon, alias 'Buddha,' an accomplice who assisted operator Jo Joo-bin in running and managing chat rooms on the Telegram 'Baksa Bang' and is charged with violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sexual Offenses, left the Jongno Police Station and headed to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Lee Won-ho was previously detained by the military police on charges of distributing hundreds of sexually exploitative materials targeting minors and promoting the Doctor's Room externally (violations of the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles Against Sexual Abuse, etc.).

This is the first time the military has decided to disclose a suspect's identity. Following the police's disclosure of the identities of Jo, the suspect who produced and distributed sexually exploitative materials in the Doctor's Room case, and 'Buddha' Kang Hoon (18), this is the third case of identity disclosure. The Army explained that the decision was made in accordance with Article 25 (Disclosure of Suspect's Face, etc.) of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes.

As the police disclosed the identities of suspects related to the Doctor's Room and public demand for strict punishment of digital sex crimes increased, the military appears to have made an unprecedented decision to disclose identities. The military, which previously had no clear regulations on identity disclosure, has newly established guidelines related to suspect identity disclosure based on this case.

The Ministry of National Defense has mandated the formation of an Identity Disclosure Committee consisting of seven members, including at least four external members such as legal professionals, doctors, clergy, educators, and psychologists. This is the same standard as civilian investigative agencies.

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