'Investigation Information Leak by Lee Seon-gyun' Police Officer Admits Crime... Arrest Warrant Denied

Confirmed Information Leak
Court: "Suspect Admitted to Crime and Important Evidence Collected"

An arrest warrant for a current police officer suspected of leaking investigation information related to actor Lee Seon-gyun, who died while under investigation for drug use, has been dismissed.

Song Baek-hyun, the warrant judge at Suwon District Court, dismissed the arrest warrant on the 23rd for police officer A, a senior officer affiliated with the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, who is accused of official secrets leakage and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act.

Judge Song stated, "Considering that the suspect has admitted to the crime and important evidence has been collected, the necessity for detention is not recognized."

Police officer A from Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, who was suspected of leaking investigation information related to actor Lee Seon-gyun (48), who died while under investigation for drug use, and was charged with breach of official secrets and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, is coming out of the detention center at Suwon Nambu Police Station in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do on the afternoon of the 23rd to attend the pre-arrest suspect interrogation (warrant review).
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Officer A is suspected of leaking a report containing the progress of the investigation into Lee’s drug case to an external party.

On the day of the warrant hearing, Officer A appeared at the Gyeonggi Suwon Southern Police Station wearing a hat and mask, but did not respond to reporters’ questions about whether he admitted the charges.

It is known that Officer A worked in a different department unrelated to drug crime investigations.

The leaked report was prepared by the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency’s Narcotics Investigation Division on October 18 of last year and contained personal information such as the names, criminal records, identities, and occupations of individuals related to Lee’s drug case. The investigation is currently ongoing regarding how Officer A obtained and leaked the report and who the recipients were.

The internet entertainment media Dispatch reported a photo of the original problematic report on December 28 last year, the day after Lee’s death. The circumstances under which Dispatch obtained and reported the investigation progress report are also unknown and remain under investigation.

The police, who began the investigation in January this year, concluded that Officer A was likely involved based on the investigation details and urgently arrested him on the 21st. On the same day, a search and seizure operation was conducted at the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, including the office of the department to which Officer A belonged.

After Officer A’s arrest, the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency immediately suspended him from duty, considering it difficult for him to perform his duties normally. According to the National Public Officials Act, suspension is applicable when a public official commits a serious misconduct or significantly damages the dignity of public service and is under investigation by investigative authorities.

The Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency applied for an arrest warrant to the prosecution the day before, and the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office filed the warrant with the court on the same day.

Kim Hee-jung, Chief of the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, stated on December 18 last year, "There was no leakage of police investigation information as raised by some," but with Officer A reportedly admitting to the charges, the leakage of investigation information has been confirmed as true.