Imjae Lee, Former Yongsan Police Chief, Arrested... Special Investigation Unit Secures Legitimacy of Investigation (Comprehensive)

Court: "Risk of Evidence Destruction Recognized"
Arrest Warrant Issued for Former Situation Room Chief Song Byeong-ju
Investigation into 'Upper Echelons' Expected to Accelerate

District Mayor Park Hee-young Scheduled for Hearing on 26th

Former Yongsan Police Chief (Senior Superintendent) Lee Im-jae, who has been suspected of inadequate response to the Itaewon disaster, is entering the Seoul Western District Court on the morning of the 23rd to undergo a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant review).
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Lee Im-jae, former Yongsan Police Station Chief (Senior Superintendent) accused of inadequate response to the Itaewon disaster, was arrested by the police on the 23rd. This comes 18 days after his first arrest warrant was dismissed on the 5th of this month.

Park Wan-kyu, the warrant judge at the Seoul Western District Court, issued the arrest warrant requested by the Police Agency’s Special Investigation Headquarters (Special Investigation Unit) investigating the Itaewon disaster, charging Lee with professional negligence resulting in death and injury, and forgery and use of false official documents. Judge Park stated, "Considering the additional evidence collected, various evidence in the investigation records, and the results of the interrogation, there is a recognized risk of evidence destruction."

The Special Investigation Unit had previously applied for the first arrest warrant on the 1st, charging only professional negligence resulting in death and injury, but it was dismissed by the court. Subsequently, the unit conducted a comprehensive supplementary investigation and added charges of forgery and use of false official documents against Lee, applying for a second arrest warrant on the 19th.

According to the Special Investigation Unit, Lee is accused of failing to take appropriate measures before and after the disaster, which increased casualties. He is also accused of falsely recording his arrival time at the scene on the day of the disaster. It is alleged that he reviewed the situation report falsely stating he arrived 48 minutes earlier than actual but did not correct it.

An arrest warrant was also issued for Song Byung-joo, former head of the Yongsan Police 112 Situation Room (Police Superintendent), for the same reasons as Lee. Song is accused of professional negligence resulting in death and injury for failing to take appropriate safety measures, such as pushing the crowd spilling onto the roadway back onto the sidewalk despite 112 emergency calls warning of the risk of crushing just before the disaster. He is also accused of delaying rescue by failing to report to his superior Lee in a timely manner and inadequately controlling the scene.

Park Hee-young, Mayor of Yongsan District
Photo by Yonhap News

With the issuance of arrest warrants for Lee and others, the legitimacy of the Special Investigation Unit’s investigation, which had been questioned, is expected to be somewhat secured. Until now, the only suspects the unit had sent for arrest were two police officials involved in the 'information report deletion suspicion,' leading to criticism that investigative resources were wasted on matters unrelated to the core of the disaster.

The decision on whether to detain Park Hee-young, Yongsan District Mayor, and Choi Won-jun, head of the Yongsan District Office Safety and Disaster Division, who were also subject to arrest warrants on the same day as Lee, is expected on the 26th. Although the substantive hearing for the warrants was originally scheduled for the afternoon of that day, the court rescheduled it considering Park’s COVID-19 diagnosis and quarantine period.

If arrest warrants are also issued for the two Yongsan District Office officials, including Mayor Park, following Lee and others, it is anticipated that the investigation into higher-ups such as Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min and Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Kim Kwang-ho, which had been postponed after the initial detention of key suspects, will accelerate. The Special Investigation Unit’s process of applying for arrest warrants against fire authorities, including Chief Choi Seong-beom of the Yongsan Fire Station, which has been practically formalized, may also proceed faster than planned.

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