Police Special Investigation Unit Urgently Arrests Police Commissioner and Seoul Chief on 'Rebellion Charges'

The police have urgently arrested Police Commissioner Jo Ji-ho and Seoul Police Commissioner Kim Bong-sik in connection with the 'December 3 Emergency Martial Law Incident.'

Cho Ji-ho, Commissioner of the National Police Agency. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 11th, the Police Agency's Special Investigation Unit announced that the two were urgently arrested on charges of treason. Commissioner Jo appeared at the Mapo Police Station of the Seoul Police Agency at 4 p.m. the previous day, and Commissioner Kim appeared at the Seodaemun Police Agency at 5:30 p.m. for questioning.

They are accused of ordering two instances of complete access control to the National Assembly during the martial law period, blocking members of the National Assembly from entering as they headed to vote on lifting the martial law. Commissioner Jo, who appeared at the National Assembly, stated that the first access control was under his orders, and the second was at the request of Park An-su, then Martial Law Commander. The Special Investigation Unit obtained their mobile phones voluntarily, analyzed communication records, and imposed travel bans on them.

Democratic Party lawmaker Hwang Jeong-ah raised suspicions that Commissioner Jo transferred his SIM card from an existing Galaxy S24 device to a Galaxy S20 at 2:37 p.m. on the 6th, and then transferred the SIM card back from the Galaxy S20 to the Galaxy S24 at 2:24 p.m. on the 8th.

The Police Agency's spokesperson office stated, “This is not true. On the morning of the 6th, Commissioner Jo voluntarily submitted his existing mobile phone with the SIM card installed to the National Investigation Headquarters. On the same day in the afternoon, he received a new SIM card for work purposes and installed it in a separate device. On the afternoon of the 8th, after retrieving the voluntarily submitted phone, he transferred the newly issued SIM card to that device and has been using it since.”