Police Secure Mobile Phones of Seocho Station Command Line in 'Lee Yong-gu Investigation'... Also Analyzing Dashcam Footage

Lee Yong-gu, Deputy Minister of Justice, is attending the 1st Subcommittee on Bill Examination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 5th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's joint fact-finding investigation team for hearings and investigations, which is probing allegations that the investigator in charge ignored the black box footage showing Vice Minister of Justice Lee Yong-gu assaulting a taxi driver, has obtained and is examining the mobile phones of the command line at Seocho Police Station.

A Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency official stated on the 29th, "We are conducting a wide-ranging investigation including the then Seocho Police Chief, Criminal Division Chief, and Criminal Team Leader, as well as the responding officers," adding, "We have voluntarily collected and are conducting forensic analysis on call records, mobile phones, and office computers of the chief, division chief, team leader, and the person in charge."

Additionally, to verify the facts, the investigation team is questioning eight police officers including the district unit staff who first responded, the victim taxi driver, and the black box company president, while securing and analyzing the relevant black box footage. The official said, "We have heard all related testimonies, but we need to cross-check everything through the forensic results," and added, "We plan to verify each detail with a focus on accuracy in the forensic process."

Vice Minister Lee assaulted a taxi driver who tried to wake him up while he was intoxicated in front of his apartment in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on November 6 last year. However, the police closed the case as an internal investigation, applying the charge of assault with no intention to press charges, citing the absence of black box footage proving Lee's crime and the fact that the taxi driver had reached a settlement.

However, controversy arose after allegations surfaced that Sergeant A, the investigator in charge, had reviewed but ignored the black box footage capturing the incident. The police recently placed Sergeant A on administrative leave and formed a fact-finding investigation team to conduct an inquiry.

As the controversy escalated, the police repeatedly apologized. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said on the same day, "We apologize to the public for the parts that were confirmed late and differ from the facts previously explained."

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