Prosecutors Secure Testimony from Lee Jong-seop on Former Defense Minister Song Young-moo's Alleged Coercion of Signature in Martial Law Document Case

The High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (Hugoong) is reported to have secured testimony from Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop to prove the charges against former Minister of National Defense Song Young-moo, who is suspected of 'forcibly obtaining false signatures.'

According to the legal community on the 16th, Minister Lee submitted a written statement to Hugoong stating that "at the meeting chaired by the Minister of National Defense, then-Minister Song Young-moo made remarks implying that there was no legal issue with the martial law document." Minister Lee attended the meeting as the Deputy Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Lieutenant General) at the time.

Former Minister Song is accused of abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights for having made his subordinates create and sign a fact-checking statement denying the media reports that he said at a July 2018 meeting that there was "no legal problem" with the martial law review document prepared by the Defense Security Command during the Park Geun-hye administration.

It was revealed the following year through then-Assemblyman Lee Cheol-hee of the Democratic Party and the Military Human Rights Center that the Defense Security Command had prepared a document titled "Plan for Executing Martial Law and Joint Operations" during the impeachment crisis of former President Park in 2017. Subsequently, reports about former Minister Song's remarks implying "no problem" sparked controversy over the nature of the document.

Min Byung-sam, then Commander of the 100th Defense Security Command Unit at the Ministry of National Defense (retired colonel), who is known to have been the only one to refuse to sign the fact-checking statement, reported a document titled "Minister-chaired Meeting Summary," which outlined former Minister Song's problematic remarks, to his superiors.

Hugoong is expected to complete the investigation soon and request the prosecution to indict.