At the trial of former President Yoon Sukyeol on charges of insurrection, Lee Sanghyun, former commander of the 1st Airborne Brigade of the Army Special Warfare Command (SWC), reaffirmed that it was indeed former President Yoon who gave the order during the martial law period to "break down the door if necessary and enter."
The 25th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Chief Judge Ji Guyoun) held the sixth hearing on charges including leading an insurrection against former President Yoon starting at 10:15 a.m. on June 9, and conducted a cross-examination of former Commander Lee.
Previously, during the fifth hearing, former Commander Lee testified that he had received instructions from former President Yoon, relayed through Kwak Jonggeun, then commander of the SWC, during the martial law period to "drag out the lawmakers" and "break down the door with an axe if necessary."
On this day, Yoon's legal team pointed out that in Lee's media interviews and statements to investigative authorities, he used the term "higher-ups" instead of "president," and asked, "Isn't it possible that you never actually heard the word 'president'?" Lee replied, "I heard 'president'." He further stated, "I heard that there was a video conference with the higher-ups, and when I asked, 'Who gave such an order?' I heard the word 'president'." He continued, "After that, I also heard from the president regarding the personnel boarding the vehicle, and when I spoke with the battalion commander immediately after speaking with former Commander Kwak, I conveyed it this way. If I had only said 'higher-ups,' I would not have been able to suddenly tell the battalion commander it was a 'presidential order' without knowing who it was."
When Yoon's side asked if Lee had made statements that were not true in order to avoid criminal punishment, Lee denied this, saying, "After this incident, my subordinates were in a state of shock, so I told them everything I knew about what had happened," and added, "I made one promise to my subordinates: If any of my subordinates below me were punished, I would take my own life." He emphasized, "I did not serve in the military with the intention of lying."
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