The True Identity of 'Yeom Seok-jin,' Who Said "I Didn't Know I Would Be Liberated"... Claims He Was a High-Ranking Japanese Spy

Movie poster of 'Assassination' / Photo by Showbox

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] "Because I didn't know! Because I didn't know I would be liberated!" - Line by Lee Jung-jae in the movie 'Assassination' when asked why he betrayed comrades

It has been claimed that Yeom Dong-jin (real name Yeom Eung-taek), known as the real-life figure of Yeom Seok-jin, the head of the Provisional Government's Police Bureau portrayed by Lee Jung-jae in the movie 'Assassination,' acted as a Japanese secret agent for eight years during the Japanese occupation.

Professor Jung Byung-joon of Ewha Womans University stated in an article contributed to the latest issue of the quarterly journal 'Historical Criticism' that "Yeom Dong-jin was arrested by the Kwantung Army Military Police in Sanseongjin, Tonghua County, in March 1936 and became a secret agent, working as an informant for the Tonghua Military Police until March 1944."

He explained, "From June 1940 to March 1944, Yeom Dong-jin received special service payments totaling 2,418 won over 34 occasions," adding, "He was not a temporary informant due to a momentary mistake or survival strategy but was a professional secret agent."

To support this, Professor Jung presented evidence including reports from the Police Department of South Pyongan Province under the Japanese Governor-General of Korea and the 'Overview of the Organization of the Kwantung Military Police in Jilin Province' compiled by the Archives Bureau of the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in China in 1969, based on Japanese, Manchukuo, and Chinese materials documenting those who worked for the Japanese Military Police.

Chinese documents describing Yeom Eung-taek state, "He secretly continued reconnaissance on the organization status of the Northeast underground party and anti-Japanese guerrilla army, communication networks, sources of food and ammunition, and the public opinion of Chinese and Koreans in the Tonghua area regarding the national situation," and note that "he received a total of 2,481 won in special service payments over 34 occasions."

It has been claimed that Yeom Dong-jin (real name Yeom Eung-taek), the supreme commander of the right-wing terrorist group 'Baekui-sa' and the real-life model of Yeom Seok-jin, a character played by Lee Jung-jae in the movie "Assassination," worked as a Japanese secret agent for eight years.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Professor Jung pointed out, "In the early 1940s, Yeom Dong-jin received special service payments estimated to be equivalent to a military salary, which supports that he was an important and high-ranking informant for the Kwantung Army," and added, "In 1941, he even placed a pro-Japanese advertisement in the Governor-General's official newspaper 'Maeil Shinbo' commemorating the launch of the National Mobilization League for Korea, a total war organization under Japanese militarism."

He further speculated that "it is unknown how many independence activists and organizations suffered damage because of Yeom Dong-jin," and suggested the possibility that Yeom handed over intimate information about Kim Gu, Lee Cheong-cheon, and Kim Won-bong, including their personal relationships, to the Japanese authorities.

Yeom Dong-jin, who served as the commander-in-chief of the far-right terrorist group 'Baekui-sa' known for involvement in the assassinations of Yeowoon-hyung and Kim Gu, attracted public attention as the movie 'Assassination' became a hit. There has been ongoing debate between claims that he was a secret agent, as depicted in the film, and views that he was an independence activist.

Born in 1909 in South Pyongan Province, Yeom Dong-jin moved to China in 1933, enrolling first at the National Sun Yat-sen University and then at the Luoyang Military Academy supported by the Chinese Kuomintang. After liberation, he served as the commander-in-chief of Baekui-sa.