Yongsan 112 Team Leader, Former Yongsan Chief Lee Im-jae Trial 'Eye of the Typhoon'

Both the prosecution and the defense of former Yongsan Police Chief Lee Im-jae, who is suspected of inadequate response to the ‘Itaewon disaster,’ have identified Jeong Hyun-wook, head of the Yongsan Police Station 112 Operations Support Team, as a key witness in the trial.

Former Yongsan Police Chief Lee Im-jae, who was indicted on charges related to the inadequate response to the Itaewon disaster and allegations of deleting information reports, is seen leaving the Western District Court in Mapo-gu, Seoul, after completing the pre-trial detention hearing on December 5 last year. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Western District Court (Presiding Judge Bae Seong-jung) held the second pretrial hearing on the 10th at 2:30 p.m. for Lee and four other Yongsan Police officials, who are charged with professional negligence resulting in death and injury, as well as falsification and use of false official documents.

The pretrial hearing is a procedure where the court listens to the prosecution and defense’s plans for presenting evidence before the formal trial begins, and narrows down necessary evidence and witnesses. Although defendants are not obligated to attend, all five defendants were present on this day.

Both the prosecution and Lee’s defense requested Jeong as a witness. Both sides regard Jeong as a key witness, and his testimony is expected to influence the direction of the trial.

Regarding the order of witness examination, the prosecution stated, “Since Jeong Hyun-wook’s testimony is extensive and important, it is worth considering examining him before other witnesses.” The defense also agreed to prioritize Jeong’s examination.

Additionally, Lee’s defense denied the charges again, as they did in the first pretrial hearing. They argued, “The radio communication itself is difficult to hear clearly when actually listened to,” and claimed, “The indictment describes the situation as if no action was taken despite hearing the radio communication.” They requested verification of the radio communication recordings during the trial.

In the previous pretrial hearing, when the court asked, “Setting aside moral and administrative responsibility, is it correct to raise legal issues about criminal liability and to deny the act of falsifying official documents itself?” Lee’s defense answered, “Yes.”

Lee is accused of neglecting command duties, such as failing to take prior measures despite reports recommending deployment of personnel during the Halloween festival, and arriving late at the scene on the day of the Itaewon disaster. He is also charged with involvement in the creation of a false police situation report stating that he arrived at the Itaewon police substation at 10:17 p.m., 48 minutes earlier than his actual arrival time of around 11:05 p.m. on the day of the disaster.

Meanwhile, the prosecution has amended the indictment to correct some errors regarding the date and time of the incident.

The next trial session is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on July 8.

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