Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor to Examine Yoon and Kim Geon-hee's Secret Phone Records... Cho Tae-yong Also Admits Yoon's Fury

[Financial News] The Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Team (Special Prosecutor Lee Myeong-hyeon) has decided to secure the secret phone communication records of key figures, including former President Yoon Seok-yeol and his spouse Kim Geon-hee.
Jeong Min-young, assistant special prosecutor of Chae Sang-byeong, stated at a regular briefing on the 30th, "Last week, we executed a search and seizure warrant for the secret phone communication records of officials from the Presidential Office, the Ministry of National Defense, and the military," adding, "We plan to receive the secret phone communication records of former President Yoon, Mrs. Kim, former National Security Office Director Cho Tae-yong, former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop, and former Marine Corps 1st Division Commander Lim Seong-geun from the Military Command Communication Command and the Presidential Security Service."
Mrs. Kim's secret phone was issued to her, and the related records are expected to be submitted by the end of this week. The search and seizure are being conducted in the form of voluntary submission.
The secret phone records secured by the special prosecutor are known to have been collected extensively for more than five days around July 31, 2023, when the so-called 'VIP Fury Theory' emerged. Assistant Special Prosecutor Jeong stated, "We plan to investigate the secret phone communication records of key figures during the period suspected of external pressure on the investigation following the death of Chae Sang-byeong."
Regarding Mrs. Kim's secret phone communication, Assistant Special Prosecutor Jeong said, "It has been confirmed that contact records exchanged via regular mobile phones exist, and it is believed that secret phones may have been used intermittently," adding, "We judged it necessary to confirm who was in contact with whom during the same period, not just Mrs. Kim, and applied for a warrant, which is being executed accordingly."
Former National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong, who appeared as a suspect at the special prosecutor's office the previous day, reportedly admitted to the special prosecutor that former President Yoon was 'furious' after receiving the initial investigation results of the Marine Corps investigation team during the Chae Sang-byeong death incident in July 2023.
Assistant Special Prosecutor Jeong said, "(Former Director Cho) provided a lot of testimony about what he remembers, and we have also confirmed the testimony of other meeting attendees and related parties," adding, "Additional confirmation is needed for parts where his memory is not accurate, and further investigation will be conducted." It is said that former Director Cho did not exercise his right to remain silent.
The special prosecutor plans to summon former Presidential Office Public Discipline Secretary Lee Si-won for investigation on the 31st. Assistant Special Prosecutor Jeong stated, "There is a lot to confirm with former Secretary Lee regarding the retrieval of records," adding, "We also plan to further examine call records."
On the same day at 1:30 PM, a second reference investigation will be conducted on Colonel Park Jeong-hoon, head of the Marine Corps investigation team. Assistant Special Prosecutor Jeong explained, "While the first investigation was a procedure to hear Colonel Park's position immediately after the special prosecutor's launch, tomorrow's investigation aims to directly confirm and check the newly secured testimonies and contents from the Ministry of National Defense and Marine Corps officials."
The 'VIP Fury Theory' is the suspicion that former President Yoon was furious after receiving the initial investigation results of the Chae Sang-byeong incident, saying, "If you punish the division commander for such a thing, who would want to be a division commander?" and that there was external pressure on the investigation, such as former Minister Lee ordering the suspension of police transfer and the cancellation of a press briefing.

scottchoi15@fnnews.com Choi Eun-sol Reporter