Probe into Alleged Perjury over "NIS Instruction" Remark in National Assembly
Clarifying Suspicions over Data Leak and Testimony at Hearing
The police are summoning Harold Rogers, acting head of Coupang Korea, once again for questioning as a suspect. He has been identified as a key figure in the various allegations surrounding Coupang.
On the 5th, the Anti-Corruption and Public Crimes Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced that it plans to summon Rogers on the afternoon of the 6th to investigate whether he gave false testimony at the National Assembly's "Coupang Incident Joint Hearing" held on December 30-31 last year. The suspected charge is perjury under the Act on Testimony and Appraisal Before the National Assembly.
At the hearing, Rogers testified, in connection with why Coupang investigated the Chinese national suspected of leaking personal information and retrieved the suspect's laptop, to the effect that "there was an instruction from the Korean government, namely the National Intelligence Service."
However, the National Intelligence Service denied this, stating that it "never gave any instructions to Coupang," and the National Assembly’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee filed a complaint for perjury against seven current and former Coupang executives, including Rogers.
In this round of questioning, the police plan to focus on what basis Rogers had for his statement that there were instructions from the National Intelligence Service, whether that statement constitutes a falsehood, and whether he was aware that it was false.
This is Rogers’ second appearance before the police, following his attendance on January 30. He had previously failed to comply with two summonses, but expressed his intention to appear and entered Korea after the possibility of custody was raised. During the first round of questioning, he stated that he would cooperate with the police investigation, but did not offer an apology.
In the first investigation, the police also questioned him over allegations that Coupang, in the wake of the large-scale personal information leak, conducted a so-called "self-investigation" and destroyed evidence, on charges including obstruction of the performance of official duties.
Separately, Rogers also faces allegations that he ordered reports that downplayed or evaded Coupang’s industrial accident responsibility for the death in 2020 of Coupang worker Jang Deokjun, which raises the possibility of additional summonses.
This renewed summons comes amid growing backlash in some quarters of the United States over domestic sanctions and investigations targeting Coupang. Rogers is reported to have received a subpoena from the U.S. Congress to appear on the 23rd of this month to testify on whether the Korean government is "targeting" American companies.
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