Warrant Denied for Military Court Staff Suspected of Passing Investigation Information to Air Force Legal Office Chief

The portrait and memorial tablet of an Air Force female non-commissioned officer who took an extreme step after reporting sexual harassment are placed in the mortuary of the Armed Forces Capital Hospital funeral hall in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, on the 3rd of last month. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The ordinary military court dismissed the arrest warrant for a Ministry of National Defense High Military Court employee who was accused of leaking investigation details to the Air Force Headquarters Legal Office Chief, a suspect in the case of the death of an Air Force non-commissioned officer who was a victim of sexual harassment.

On the 15th, the Ministry of National Defense Ordinary Military Court dismissed the pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) requested by the military prosecution for Mr. A, a civilian employee of the High Military Court, on charges of leaking official secrets, stating, "There is insufficient evidence of the crime, and since evidence has already been secured, there is no risk of evidence destruction or flight."

Earlier, Mr. A was reported to have sent some investigation details via text messages to former Brigadier General Jeon Iksu, the Air Force Legal Office Chief, who was identified as responsible for the inadequate investigation at the early stage of the Ministry of National Defense joint investigation last month.

On the 11th, the Ministry of National Defense prosecution team detected such circumstances during the seizure and search of Mr. A's mobile phone and the forensic process of the former chief's personal mobile phone. Following additional investigations, the prosecution team requested an arrest warrant for Mr. A at the ordinary military court the day before.

However, the failure to issue the warrant for Mr. A has put a brake on the prosecution team's investigation, which had announced interim results. The prosecution team stated regarding the warrant dismissal, "We plan to continue the investigation without detention." The prosecution team is expected to focus on proving Mr. A's charge of leaking official secrets through supplementary investigations.

Some argue that the former chief should also be investigated under charges related to this suspicion. The prosecution team reportedly filed charges of dereliction of duty against the former chief 42 days after starting the investigation on the 13th, but no additional charges have been applied so far.

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