Marine Special Prosecutor to Summon Yoon on the 23rd as Suspect for ‘Abuse of Authority’ and Other Charges

Special Prosecutor: "Yoon is the Key Suspect in Investigation Pressure and Escape to Australia"

Former President Yoon Suk-yeol attended the first trial on charges of obstruction of special official duties and abuse of authority to interfere with the exercise of rights at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 26th of last month. Photo by Joint Press Corps

The special prosecutor team led by Lee Myunghyun, which is investigating the death of a Marine, will summon former President Yoon Suk-yeol as a suspect for questioning on the 23rd.

At a regular briefing on the 13th, Special Prosecutor Jeong Minyoung announced, "The special prosecutor's office plans to send a summons today to former President Yoon, requesting his appearance at the special prosecutor's office for questioning at 10 a.m. on the 23rd."

The special prosecutor's team stated that it has secured objective evidence regarding external pressure on the investigation into the death of Corporal Chae and the escape of former Defense Minister Lee Jongseop to Australia as ambassador. After interviewing multiple witnesses and suspects, the team confirmed that former President Yoon received a report on the Corporal Chae case, reacted with intense anger, and reprimanded former Minister Lee.

Special Prosecutor Jeong emphasized, "Former President Yoon is the key suspect who must be questioned to uncover the truth, as he had the final decision-making authority regarding the external pressure on the Corporal Chae investigation and the escape of former Minister Lee to Australia, both of which are major targets of the special prosecutor's investigation."

He added, "After being detained on charges related to insurrection, former President Yoon has refused to comply with other special prosecutor summonses and has not appeared in court proceedings either. Given the necessity of questioning former President Yoon, we urge him to appear voluntarily and cooperate with the investigation."

Former President Yoon, who faces charges of abuse of authority and aiding a suspect's escape, is considered the central figure in the so-called 'VIP rage' incident, which marked the beginning of the external pressure allegations. He is suspected of instructing the presidential office and the Ministry of National Defense to exclude former 1st Marine Division Commander Lim Seonggeun from the list of suspects.

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