Park Ji-won Accused, Assigned to Public Investigation Division 1
Seo Hoon Also Investigated After Family's Accusation
Expanded to Presidential Office, Coast Guard, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries
Legal Community: "Self-Accusation to Secure Legitimacy"
Focus on Formation of Special Investigation Team
[Asia Economy Military Specialist Reporter Yang Nak-gyu, Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The 'West Sea Civil Servant Killing Incident' has entered a new phase as the National Intelligence Service (NIS) filed a complaint against former Director Park Ji-won with the prosecution. Following the Blue House Presidential Office, the Korea Coast Guard, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, and the Ministry of National Defense, the NIS has also come under investigation. There is a high possibility that a 'special investigation team' will be formed within the prosecution.
On the morning of the 7th, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office assigned the case of the NIS's complaint against former Director Park to the Public Investigation Division 1 (Chief Prosecutor Lee Hee-dong). The NIS filed the complaint with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office the day before, and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office immediately transferred the case to the Central District Prosecutors' Office. The Central District Prosecutors' Office completed the department assignment the day after receiving the case. Although it is a two-year-old case and collecting evidence is not easy, a swift investigation is deemed necessary due to the public interest. Since Public Investigation Division 1 is already investigating this case, the assignment decision was likely straightforward.
Public Investigation Division 1 will investigate two former NIS directors together. Prior to former Director Park, former Director Seo Hoon was accused on the 22nd of last month by the bereaved family of the late Lee Dae-jin, a Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries civil servant killed by North Korean soldiers in the West Sea, on charges including abuse of power. The complaint from the bereaved family was also assigned to Public Investigation Division 1. Former Director Seo was also accused by the NIS the day before, regarding not the 'West Sea Civil Servant Killing Incident' but the 'Defection Fishermen Repatriation Incident.' This case involves two North Korean sailors who killed 16 colleagues, defected, and expressed their intention to defect in November 2019, but were repatriated to North Korea through Panmunjom. This case was assigned to Public Investigation Division 3. However, a prosecution official said, "Depending on the situation, the two cases may be merged and investigated together." Since Chief Prosecutor Lee Hee-dong officially took office on the 4th, Public Investigation Division 1 has been reorganizing the investigation team, thoroughly reviewing the case details, and considering whether to conduct direct investigations. The outline for forming a special investigation team may be finalized as early as next week.
In the legal community, the NIS's 'self-complaint' is seen as a strong reason for forming a special investigation team. Since many institutions are involved in the case and a large number of investigative personnel need to be deployed accordingly, forming a special investigation team is inevitable. There is also an analysis that the NIS, responsible for national secrets and security, has secured legitimacy for forming a special investigation team by investigating itself and then filing complaints against former NIS directors with the prosecution.
If the special investigation team is activated, the prosecution is highly likely to immediately conduct comprehensive raids on the Presidential Archives, the Korea Coast Guard, and others to quickly secure materials. Among these, the institutions involved in the case are showing stark differences in their positions. The Korea Coast Guard recently reversed its interim investigation result, which had announced "voluntary defection to the North" eight days after Lee's disappearance, along with an apology. On the other hand, the Ministry of National Defense denied allegations that it had unauthorizedly deleted intelligence related to the case, calling them "groundless." At the time of the incident, the term "defection to the North" was likely collected as special intelligence (SI) through U.S. reconnaissance aircraft, and if so, it would have been difficult to disclose or delete the information without U.S. permission. Some argue that even if the original SI information is not deleted, reports that can explain the judgment process could be deleted. A senior military official said, "Documents such as reports can be deleted after being shared among intelligence agencies if deemed unnecessary, but deleting the original source information is practically impossible."
Meanwhile, on the morning of the 8th, Lee's bereaved family plans to submit a detention request for former Director Park to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. They also announced that they will file criminal complaints against then-Minister of National Defense Seo Wook and Joint Chiefs of Staff Intelligence Chief Lee Young-cheol for abuse of power and damage to official electronic records. The bereaved family holds them responsible for the deletion of first- and second-class intelligence related to Lee's death.
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