Did the Ministry of National Defense Ultimately Conduct a 'Covering for Their Own' Investigation?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Ministry of National Defense Joint Investigation Team announced the interim investigation results on the death of Air Force Sergeant Lee, who was a victim of sexual harassment, on the 9th, but criticism is emerging that it is a "self-investigation protecting their own." There have been calls for a strong investigation into the military prosecution and the Air Force Headquarters Legal Office, which conducted a shoddy investigation, but it is said that the investigation is still inadequate.

According to the interim investigation results, Defense Minister Seo Wook issued a "stern warning" to the head of the Ministry of National Defense Investigation Headquarters, which oversees the military police organization. The military police conducted a shoddy investigation from the beginning. When the military police first reported to the Ministry of National Defense, they reported the female sergeant's death as a simple death. The sexual harassment victimization was excluded, and the black box inside the vehicle where the incident occurred was not seized. On the 25th of last month, after the Military Prosecution Investigation Review Committee recommended the dismissal of Warrant Officer A, the investigator in charge of the 20th Wing, the victim's unit, and Lieutenant Colonel B, the commander of the Military Police Battalion, both were removed from their posts. Two others, including the commander of the Air Force Headquarters Military Police Corps who omitted the fact of forced molestation from the report to the Ministry of National Defense Investigation Headquarters and the head of the Central Investigation Unit, were also investigated following the recommendation of the Investigation Review Committee on the 22nd of last month and were indicted on the 8th.

Regarding the head of the Air Force Headquarters Legal Office, the top figure of the Air Force legal organization, the investigation was limited and excluded from prosecutorial affairs for the time being. According to the investigation results of the "Air Force Headquarters Legal Office dereliction of duty" announced by the joint investigation team on that day, Legal Office Chief Jeon Ik-su remains at the internal investigation stage rather than a formal investigation. He is the head of the Air Force Legal Office, the superior organization overseeing the 20th Wing military prosecution, which was in charge of the initial investigation. He is in a position that cannot escape responsibility for the shoddy investigation.

However, due to Chief Jeon's refusal to attend, forensic analysis of the seized items has not been conducted even on the 24th day. Chief Jeon is requesting transfer to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), so the prosecution team's investigation is at a standstill. If he does not consent to forensic observation, the evidence may not be recognized in court later, so the investigation cannot proceed until the Legal Office Chief agrees to observe the forensic process.

Because of this, criticism is emerging both inside and outside the military that this is a "typical Ministry of National Defense self-investigation" trying to gloss over the situation with mere verbal light measures rather than holding those responsible for the shoddy investigation accountable.

Meanwhile, the head of the Air Force Headquarters Gender Equality Center, who failed to properly protect and support the victim, and the commander of the 15th Special Mission Wing Information and Communications Battalion, who caused secondary damage, were only subject to relatively mild "disciplinary demands."

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