Former National Security Office Chief Suh Hoon is attending and speaking at the press conference on the 'West Sea Public Official Shooting Incident and the Deportation of Heinous Criminals' held at the National Assembly. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The prosecution investigating the 'West Sea Public Official Shooting Incident' has moved to secure the custody of Seo Hoon, the former National Security Office chief and the top official in the Moon Jae-in administration's North Korea security line.
The Public Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Lee Hee-dong) filed an arrest warrant for former Director Seo on the 29th.
Former Director Seo was the highest-ranking figure in the Blue House's diplomatic and security line in September 2020, when the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries official, the late Lee Dae-jun, was killed by North Korean soldiers. He is accused of abuse of authority, obstruction of the exercise of rights, and falsification and use of false official documents for hastily concluding Lee's 'voluntary defection to the North' at a ministerial meeting held around 1 a.m. on September 23, 2020, the day after Lee's death, and ordering related ministries to delete confidential intelligence that contradicted this.
The prosecution summoned former Director Seo for questioning as a suspect on the 24th and 25th. In response to the prosecution's questions pressing him on various suspicions, the information reported to former President Moon Jae-in during this process, and the instructions he gave, Seo denied the charges, stating, "I disclosed all the circumstances transparently at the time and never baselessly labeled Lee as defecting to the North or ordered the deletion of materials." He further testified that he received instructions from former President Moon, who was fully briefed on the matter, saying, "Accurate fact-checking is a priority, and the public must be informed of the facts as they are."
During the investigation of former Director Seo, the prosecution reportedly judged that due to the seriousness of the case and concerns over evidence tampering, detention was unavoidable.
The pre-arrest detention hearing for former Director Seo will be held at 10 a.m. on the 2nd of next month, presided over by Judge Kim Jeong-min, who is in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court. Once the prosecution secures Seo's custody, it plans to intensively investigate the involvement of other 'higher-ups.' An investigation of former Director Park Ji-won is also expected to take place soon.
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