Colonel Junghoon Park’s Appeal Trial Begins in ‘Private Chae Case’... “Will Request Yoon as Witness”

Colonel Park's Team: "Minister and Commander Issued Orders After President Yoon's 'Anger'"
Military Prosecutors to Call Former Defense Minister Lee Jongseop as Witness

The legal team of former Marine Investigation Unit Chief Colonel Junghoon Park, who was indicted on charges of insubordination and defamation of a superior in connection with the initial investigation into the death of Marine Private First Class Chae, announced during the second trial that they would request former President Yoon Suk-yeol as a witness. Colonel Park was acquitted in the first trial.

Former Marine Investigation Unit Chief Junghoon Park, who was acquitted in the first trial on charges including insubordination related to the initial investigation of a Marine fatality accident, is attending the appellate court hearing preparation session held at the Seoul High Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on April 18, 2025. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

On April 18, the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 4-1 (Presiding Judges Youngnan Ji, Hyukjoong Kwon, and Jingoo Hwang) held the first appellate hearing preparation session for Colonel Park. Colonel Park's legal team stated, "The key issues identified in the first trial were whether former President Yoon's anger occurred on July 31, 2023, which marked the start of the case, and the legality of the orders given by the minister and the commander."

Colonel Park's side explained, "We also requested former President Yoon as a witness in the first trial. However, considering his status as the sitting president at the time, we substituted this with a fact inquiry. The response was inadequate, and the verdict did not address this key issue," clarifying the reason for requesting him as a witness again.

On this day, Colonel Park appeared in court wearing his military uniform. Attendance was not mandatory for the defendant, as a hearing preparation session is a procedure to clarify the issues and evidence before the main trial begins.

The military prosecution stated, "Considering the statements of reference witnesses, the order from the Marine Corps commander to withhold the transfer is recognized." They explained that they appealed the original verdict, which found Park not guilty of insubordination, on the grounds of factual errors.

The prosecution also announced its intention to request four individuals as witnesses, including former Defense Minister Jongseop Lee and former Marine Corps Commander Gyewhan Kim. Colonel Park's legal team also stated that they plan to request former Commander Kim as a witness.

The court stated, "We intended to clarify the issues and hear opinions on the admissibility of evidence, but since a significant number of evidence requests were made orally in court, which the court did not anticipate, it is difficult to make a decision on their admissibility at this time." The court requested both parties to submit written evidence requests within two weeks.

The court scheduled an additional hearing preparation session for May 16.

Colonel Park was brought to trial on charges of insubordination for failing to comply with an order from then-Marine Corps Commander Gyewhan Kim to withhold the transfer of investigation records regarding the death of Private First Class Chae, which occurred on July 19, 2023. He also faced charges of defamation of a superior for allegedly distorting the remarks of then-Defense Minister Jongseop Lee in media interviews, causing the public to believe that Minister Lee had issued improper orders.

In January, the Central Regional Military Court acquitted Colonel Park, stating, "There was no clear order to withhold the transfer given to Colonel Park at the time of the incident." The court also found that although former Commander Kim did issue a stop order at the time of the actual transfer, it was not a legitimate order, and therefore the charge of insubordination did not apply.

Colonel Park, who was dismissed from his post in August 2023, remained without a position during the investigation and trial, but after the first trial verdict, he was appointed as Deputy Chief of Marine Personnel and Administration in March.