Marine Special Prosecutor Requests Arrest Warrants for Former Defense Minister Lee Jongseop and Four Others on Charges of Abuse of Authority

"Presidential aides, Defense Ministry, and military officials systematically intervened... Concern over destruction of evidence"
"A serious public office crime involving external pressure"... Arrest warrant re-requested for former commander Kim Gyehwan

Special Prosecutor Jeong Minyoung is giving a related briefing at the briefing room of the Fallen Marine Special Prosecutor Team in Seocho-gu, Seoul, last July. Photo by Yonhap News

The special prosecutor team led by Lee Myunghyun, which is investigating the death of a Marine, has moved to secure the custody of former Defense Minister Lee Jongseop.

On the 20th, the special prosecutor team requested arrest warrants for former Minister Lee, former Defense Ministry military aide Park Jinhee (commander of the 56th Division), former Defense Ministry prosecutor general Kim Donghyeok, former Defense Ministry legal affairs director Yoo Jaeun, and former Marine Corps commander Kim Gyehwan, on charges including abuse of authority.

At a briefing on this day, Special Prosecutor Jeong Minyoung stated, "These individuals are accused of conspiring to commit crimes such as abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights in the process of handling the death of Corporal Chae, as well as giving false testimony with the intention of securing a guilty verdict during the trial related to the insubordination case of former Marine Corps investigation chief Park Junghoon."

He continued, "This case is a serious public office crime in which presidential aides, Defense Ministry officials, and military personnel systematically intervened and exerted external pressure on the legitimate work of the Marine Corps investigation team, which sought to clarify the cause of death of a Marine killed during operations. For the five main suspects for whom arrest warrants have been requested, the criminal facts have been substantiated, the seriousness of the offenses has been recognized, and there is a risk of evidence destruction, making it necessary to investigate them in custody."

The special prosecutor team believes that former Minister Lee was involved in the entire process of the alleged external pressure on the investigation, including the suspension of case transfer and the retrieval of records. At the time of Corporal Chae's death in July 2023, Lee was the Minister of National Defense. It has been revealed that immediately after a phone call with then-President Yoon Sukyeol, he reversed his approval of the Marine Corps investigation team's initial report, making him a key figure in clarifying suspicions of the so-called "VIP rage" and external interference in the investigation. In July, Lee admitted in a written statement to the special prosecutor team that he had received a call from former President Yoon regarding the Corporal Chae case immediately after the "VIP rage" meeting.

At the time of the alleged external pressure, former aide Park was serving as military aide to former Minister Lee. Park is suspected of exerting external pressure on the investigation line by maintaining close contact with Lee, former commander Kim, and others during the investigation into the Corporal Chae case in July and August 2023.

Former prosecutor general Kim is accused of retrieving the records of the Corporal Chae case, which the Marine Corps investigation team had transferred to the police, without a search and seizure, and of exerting undue pressure during the Defense Ministry's investigation headquarters' review process. Former legal affairs director Yoo is accused of requesting the Marine Corps to reduce the number of suspects and of improperly intervening in the Defense Ministry investigation headquarters' review process.

Former commander Kim, who was the highest-ranking officer in the Marine Corps at the time of Corporal Chae's death, has been identified as the person who conveyed the so-called "VIP rage"-that former President Yoon Sukyeol became enraged after receiving the initial investigation results from then Marine Corps investigation chief Colonel Park Junghoon.

Although former commander Kim had denied any knowledge when Colonel Park revealed the "VIP rage" incident, he admitted for the first time in two years during a court hearing for a warrant review in July that he was aware former President Yoon was angry at the time. It is known that in court, Kim stated he had likely been informed of Yoon's anger by officials such as then-presidential secretary for defense Im Kihun. An arrest warrant was previously requested for Kim at the start of the investigation but was dismissed.

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