Six Field Commanders Charged with Negligent Homicide in the Line of Duty
On the 8th, the police announced that in relation to the death of Marine Corps Private Chae Sang-byeong, three individuals including former division commander Lim Seong-geun were not prosecuted, while six on-site commanders were sent to prosecution on charges of professional negligence resulting in death.
The Criminal Mobile Unit of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency held a press briefing at 2 p.m. that day and stated, "The orders given by former division commander Lim, who did not have operational control authority, do not constitute abuse of power under criminal law," adding, "The operational orders were intended to faithfully carry out the search guidelines agreed upon with the fire department and did not alter existing guidelines or issue new instructions."
The police explained, "For former division commander Lim to be held responsible, there must be a specific and direct breach of duty of care related to the search operation, and a causal relationship between this breach and the death must be established," further stating, "It must be recognized that the risk of death due to underwater search was foreseeable or should have been foreseeable but was not."
Regarding former division commander Lim's order to "go down to the waterfront and conduct a grid-pattern search," the police said, "This can be seen as emphasizing a thorough and meticulous search using the grid method, which is a focused search method for suspicious areas according to military manuals," and added, "It is difficult to recognize a causal relationship with the death."
The police judged that six individuals?the then Rapid Response Unit Commander, Brigade Commander A, Artillery Battalion B Commander, Artillery Battalion C Commander, Headquarters Company Search Team Leader of Battalion C, and the Artillery Brigade Logistics Officer?are jointly liable for professional negligence resulting in death. The police stated, "The Artillery Battalion B Commander, as the senior battalion commander of the Artillery Brigade, directly communicated with Brigade Commander A, received search guidelines, and relayed them, thereby being directly and indirectly involved in the artillery unit's operation," adding, "By arbitrarily issuing orders that caused confusion in the artillery brigade's search operation by misleading it as an underwater search, he created risks and failed to conduct risk assessments and establish safety measures, for which he is responsible."
The police noted that the Artillery Battalion C Commander, Headquarters Company Commander, Headquarters Company Search Team Leader, and Artillery Brigade Logistics Officer were aware that the revised search guidelines issued by the Artillery Battalion B Commander were clearly dangerous and should have confirmed with higher-ups to withdraw or change the guidelines or made efforts to prevent the anticipated risks, but neglected these responsibilities.
The police viewed Brigade Commander A as the overall person responsible for the Marine Corps deployed in the Army's Yecheon area, with a duty to manage and supervise safe operation execution. They concluded that unclear explanations and lack of communication regarding the search guidelines, combined with passive instructions, collectively influenced the arbitrary changes to the search guidelines by the Artillery Battalion B Commander.
Earlier, upon receiving the case from the Ministry of National Defense Investigation Headquarters on August 24 of last year, the police immediately formed a dedicated investigation team of 24 members and began the investigation. Subsequently, they conducted investigations of 67 related personnel from the military, fire department, and local governments; on-site inspections; analysis of approximately 190 pieces of evidence obtained through search and seizure; and joint live investigations with the military, fire department, National Forensic Service, and K-University investigative advisory group.
A police official stated, "We will actively cooperate with subsequent criminal judicial procedures to ensure that the truth of the accident and those responsible are promptly revealed."
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