Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor, Ministry of National Defense Inspection Team Raid... Related to Kim Gye-hwan's Mobile Phone

[Financial News] The Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Team (Lee Myung-hyun Special Prosecutor) is conducting a raid on the Ministry of National Defense's Prosecutor's Office Scientific Investigation Division to verify missing forensic records from the mobile phone of former Marine Corps Commander Kim Gye-hwan.
Jeong Min-young, Special Prosecutor, held a regular media briefing at Seocho Hansem Building in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 18th, stating, "The Special Prosecutor Team is conducting a raid on the Ministry of National Defense's Prosecutor's Office Scientific Investigation Division from this morning," adding, "This place has secured various evidence since August 2023 to investigate Colonel Park Jung-hoon's charges of insubordination, and among them, the mobile phone of former Commander Kim is included in relation to the Chae Sang-byeong external pressure case."
He continued, "Former Commander Kim is a key suspect in the abuse of authority charge, and is at the center of the investigation pressure stemming from former President Yoon Seok-yeol's 'rage' on July 31, 2023," and "The data from July 31 to August 2 was not selected during the forensic process of the Ministry of National Defense, and today we are conducting a raid to secure additional electronic information that may remain, to see if the data from this period remains, or if it was discarded, whether recovery is possible."
The Special Prosecutor Team analyzed the forensic records of former Commander Kim's mobile phone submitted by the military prosecutor and identified that the call recording files from July 31 to August 2, 2023, were not selected. This period is known as the time when former President Yoon Seok-yeol was reportedly enraged after receiving the initial investigation results of the Chae Sang-byeong incident, and it is also the time when the Marine Corps Investigation Team was instructed to withhold the initial investigation records.
The Special Prosecutor Team conducted a first raid on the Ministry of National Defense's Prosecutor's Office on the 29th of last month.
The Ministry of National Defense's Prosecutor's Office charged Colonel Park with collective insubordination for transferring the initial investigation records of the Chae Sang-byeong incident to the Gyeongbuk Police Agency on August 2, 2023, defying the order of former Minister Lee Jong-seop to withhold the transfer. Subsequently, they applied for an arrest warrant for Colonel Park on charges of insubordination and defamation of a superior.
The Special Prosecutor Team has conducted investigations against former Ministry of National Defense Prosecutor General Kim Dong-hyuk, military prosecutor Yeom Bo-hyeon, and others in relation to this. In addition, they plan to summon former Minister Lee as a suspect on the 23rd.   


kyu0705@fnnews.com Kim Dong-kyu Reporter