'West Sea Shooting Secrets Leak' Yoo Byeongho Appears Before Police for First Time... "It Was Legitimate"

Suspicion of Leaking Classified Information in the Announcement of the "West Sea Shooting Audit"

Audit Committee member Yoo Byeongho, who is suspected of leaking military secrets during the Board of Audit and Inspection's announcement of the audit findings on the 'West Sea shooting incident', has been summoned by the police as a suspect.

Audit Committee Member Yu Byeongho appeared at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Mapo Complex at around 10 a.m. on the 26th and is answering reporters' questions. Photo by Oh Jieun

The Anti-Corruption and Public Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has been questioning Yoo from around 10 a.m. on February 26 as a suspect on charges of leaking military secrets in violation of the Protection of Military Secrets Act.

As he arrived at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Mapo Complex on the same day, Yoo said, "It was entirely natural and legitimate to audit and announce the findings on the West Sea incident," adding, "There was not a single letter of secret information in the materials that the public should not know about." He went on to say, "I will faithfully explain the various illegal acts of the Board of Audit and Inspection (management reform) task force (TF)." When asked about the "reason for pushing ahead with the distribution of the materials," he replied, "That is false information."

According to the police, Yoo is suspected of leaking second-class military secrets in the process of distributing a press release in December 2023 related to the shooting death of a public official in the West Sea. The incident involving the killing of the West Sea public official occurred on September 22, 2020, when Lee Daejun, a fisheries guidance official affiliated with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, went missing near Yeonpyeong Island in the West Sea, was then killed by North Korean soldiers, and his body was incinerated at sea.

The controversial press release of the Board of Audit and Inspection contained information on the response moves of the National Security Office, the Ministry of National Defense, and the National Intelligence Service, as well as intelligence on Lee's "expression of intent to defect to North Korea." At the time, the Audit Committee decided that the materials should not be made public, but suspicions were raised that Yoo, who was then Secretary General, and others pushed ahead with making the materials public. In response, the Board of Audit and Inspection management reform TF filed a complaint against Yoo and former Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection Choi Jaehae in November last year.

On February 3, the police conducted a search and seizure of the Board of Audit and Inspection in connection with these allegations.

Separately, Yoo has also been reported on charges of abuse of authority to interfere with the exercise of rights and obstruction of official duties, in connection with allegations that he inspected employees who opposed his views and placed them on standby.