Kim Byung-joo "Chae Sang-byeong Report, Deferred Transfer Overnight? ... Not Common Sense"

Democratic Party Lawmaker Kim Byung-joo CBS Radio Interview

Regarding the sudden suspension of the police transfer order for the investigation report on the death of the late Marine Corps Corporal Chae Su-geun, Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Byung-joo claimed, "It seems the Ministry of National Defense applied very comprehensive pressure."

On the 14th, Kim appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "'The order to suspend the transfer' is simple," adding, "The minister just gave the order in writing to suspend the transfer and said they would comply if done by a certain deadline."

He said, "However, they probably knew it was an abuse of authority," and predicted, "So they couldn't put it in writing and instead conveyed the intention, hoping the Marine Corps Commander or the head of the Marine Corps investigation unit would handle it accordingly."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He continued, "Therefore, the minister called the commander before his overseas trip, summoned the Marine Corps deputy commander to explain again, and then the vice minister called the Marine Corps commander three times. The legal affairs officer at the Ministry of National Defense also called the head of the investigation unit multiple times, conveying the intention comprehensively so that the lower ranks would comply on their own," adding, "But from the investigation unit chief's standpoint, they intended to proceed according to laws and regulations."

Lawmaker Kim speculated that there was 'intervention from higher-ups' during the process of suspending the report's transfer. He said, "The presidential office requested the investigation records, but since that could violate the law, the head of the investigation unit refused. Eventually, they were told to at least send the materials for tomorrow's briefing, which they did, but sending that became a turning point," explaining, "For example, orders like 'suspend it' or 'do this' got tangled."

Furthermore, Kim stated, "One thing is clear: without significant external pressure, the minister's approval wouldn't change overnight, nor would this escalate to an enormous charge of insubordination. It is an unreasonable case," adding, "If it cannot be explained by external pressure, it cannot be explained at all."

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