"Chaesangbyeong Incident, Due to Excessive Ambition for Achievement by the 1st Marine Division Commander"

Im Tae-hoon, Director of the Center for Military Human Rights, CBS Radio Interview
"Remove Division Commander's Negligent Homicide Charge? Obstruction of Investigation"

Im Tae-hoon, director of the Center for Military Human Rights, claimed that the deployment of personnel who should not have been involved in underwater search operations during the search for missing persons in the heavy rain disaster, which led to the death of the late Corporal Chae Soo-geun, was due to the excessive ambition of Im Seong-geun, commander of the 1st Marine Division.

On the 9th, Im appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "When the flood occurred in Pohang last year, the Marines deployed armored vehicles and were praised by the public. I cannot shake the thought that they might have tried to achieve some results in a similar way."

He pointed out, "It seems that underwater search was not originally planned on the 17th. Looking at the equipment provided, such as shovels and rakes, these are not really tools for underwater work."

He continued, "It can only be seen as the division commander issuing a showy and unreasonable order. Moreover, regardless of the concept of safety gear, the fact is that Marine soldiers are not trained personnel optimized for disaster rescue, so it is more appropriate for them to assist firefighting personnel."

On the morning of the day at the Military Human Rights Center in Mapo-gu, Seoul, Director Lim Tae-hoon (right) and Secretary General Kim Hyung-nam are briefing based on reports including KakaoTalk group chat conversations regarding the case of the late Corporal Chae Soo-geun of the Marine Corps, who died in the line of duty after being swept away by a rapid current while searching for missing persons during heavy rain. Photo by Yonhap News

Im also raised suspicions of a cover-up regarding Corporal Chae's case.

Earlier, the Marine Corps investigation team conducted an internal investigation related to Corporal Chae's accident, received approval from Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop on the 30th of last month, and planned to explain the findings to the media and the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 31st. However, on the morning of the 31st, the minister suddenly ordered that the materials not be forwarded to the police and to withhold them, leading to the cancellation of the Marine Corps investigation team's announcement of the results.

Colonel A, head of the Marine Corps investigation team, did not comply with the Ministry of Defense's withholding order and handed over the investigation materials to the police on the 2nd. He was immediately dismissed from his post that day, became the subject of an investigation, and was subjected to a search and seizure.

Im said, "The announcement was canceled two hours before it was scheduled, and from that point, there was a demand to remove the mention of the division commander's charge of negligent homicide. If that is removed, the investigation team leader himself would be subject to arrest for abuse of authority, and the act of demanding removal itself is an obstruction of investigation."

He added, "The charge of insubordination is quite serious and has a bad nature. Normally, when insubordination charges are applied, immediate emergency arrest and a request for an arrest warrant are appropriate, but that has not happened, and it seems the Ministry of Defense is still debating."

Im also claimed that the order to exclude the mention of the division commander's negligent homicide charge was not an official order. He said, "It was the legal affairs officer of the Ministry of Defense, who is not the commanding officer but the legal advisor to the minister, who called five times demanding the removal. Asking to remove the negligent homicide charge indicates that higher authority is at work."

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