Does the Investigation of the Female Sergeant Case Include the Minister... Ministry of National Defense Says "No Sanctuary"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Ministry of National Defense stated that regarding the sexual harassment and death case of Air Force Staff Sergeant Lee, it is their principle to conduct an investigation without any sanctuary concerning Defense Minister Seo Wook.

At a regular briefing on the 8th, Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Boo Seung-chan responded to the question, "Is the minister included in the military prosecution's investigation target?" by saying, "For now, we are conducting the investigation without any sanctuary."

Furthermore, when repeatedly asked, "Are you also considering an investigation of the minister?" the spokesperson replied, "I said we are investigating without any sanctuary, and we are doing so based on that principle." When asked, "Can we understand that no decision has been made yet on whether to investigate or not?" he said, "It is not appropriate to comment on the investigation status."

Earlier, the Ministry of National Defense had stated regarding the possibility of investigating former Air Force Chief of Staff Lee Seong-yong, "The principle is to investigate without any sanctuary regardless of rank or position."

Minister Seo received a phone report related to the case from former Chief of Staff Lee on the 25th of last month, just four days after Staff Sergeant Lee made an extreme choice. It is known that former Chief Lee received a report from the commander of the 20th Fighter Wing on April 14, 43 days after the sexual harassment incident occurred. The Ministry of National Defense's Inspector General's Office is reportedly investigating the entire military reporting system at the time, including former Chief Lee and Minister Seo.

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