Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Secures Kim Geon-hee's Secret Phone... Jeon Ha-gyu and Jeong Jong-beom Summoned on the 5th

[Financial News] The Chae Sang-byeong special prosecutor team (Lee Myung-hyun special prosecutor) has secured the physical and communication records of Kim Geon-hee's secret phone, the wife of former President Yoon Seok-yeol, and decided to share them with the Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor team (Min Joong-ki special prosecutor).
The special prosecutor team will summon Jeon Ha-gyu, the spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, and Jeong Jong-beom, the former deputy commander of the Marine Corps, as references on the 5th to understand the circumstances under which the announcement of the investigation results of the Chae Sang-byeong case was canceled.
Jeong Min-young, the special prosecutor for Chae Sang-byeong, said at a regular briefing on the 1st, "We have secured the physical and communication records of the secret phone used by Mrs. Kim until yesterday," and "The communication records and physical evidence will be provided to the Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor through a voluntary submission method following the execution of a warrant."
The specific details, such as how many secret phones Mrs. Kim has, are expected to be confirmed around next week. The special prosecutor team is also expected to receive the communication records of former President Yoon, former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop, and former National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong from the Presidential Security Service early next week.
The special prosecutor team will summon spokesperson Jeon Ha-gyu and former deputy commander Jeong Jong-beom as references at 10 a.m. on the 5th to investigate the circumstances related to the cancellation of the Chae Sang-byeong investigation report.
Special prosecutor Jeong explained, "Former spokesperson Jeon was present at the meeting where the Marine Corps investigation results were reported to former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop on July 30, 2023, and is well aware of the series of events where the announcement of the investigation results and the media briefing were canceled the next day."
Regarding former deputy commander Jeong, he added, "After the announcement of the investigation results and the media briefing were canceled on July 30, 2023, he attended a meeting at the call of former Minister Lee and plans to confirm the instructions and follow-up measures of former Minister Lee at that time."
The special prosecutor team previously investigated Lee Si-won, the former secretary for public discipline at the Presidential Office, who was involved in the process of retrieving the investigation records of the Chae Sang-byeong's death case transferred to the police. Former secretary Lee is a key figure in clarifying the impact on the investigation after the so-called 'VIP rage'. He is suspected of being involved in the retrieval while communicating with Yoo Jae-eun, the former legal affairs director of the Ministry of National Defense, and Lim Gi-hoon, the former defense secretary, during the retrieval of the military prosecution's investigation records on August 2, 2023.
Meanwhile, among the seven attendees of the chief secretary meeting at the Presidential Office on July 31, 2023, when the 'VIP rage' rumor arose, five reportedly testified that former President Yoon was 'furious' about the initial investigation results of the Marine Corps investigation team.
The 'VIP rage' rumor is that former President Yoon, after receiving the initial investigation results of the Chae Sang-byeong case, was furious, saying, "If you punish the division commander for this, who would want to be a division commander?" and subsequently, former Minister Lee ordered the suspension of the police transfer of the case and the cancellation of the media briefing.
 



scottchoi15@fnnews.com Choi Eun-sol Reporter