Special Prosecutor for Insurrection and Treason to Announce Results of 180-Day Investigation Today

[Financial News] The Special Prosecutor Team for Insurrection and Treason, led by Cho Eun-seok, will announce the final results of its 180-day investigation at 10 a.m. on the 15th.
According to legal sources, the special prosecutor team, which began its investigation on June 18, has indicted a total of 24 individuals, including former President Yoon Suk Yeol. Including cases handled in cooperation with the military prosecution, the total rises to 27. The team requested a total of 11 arrest warrants, including additional indictments, with five of them granted.
Cho Eun-seok, a former top prosecutor known for his expertise in special investigations, stated in a press release the day after his appointment on June 13, "I will approach this role with meticulous attention, as if recording history, and will carry out my duties as special prosecutor solely based on investigative logic."
Just six days after his appointment, on June 18, Cho indicted former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and requested an additional arrest warrant, officially launching the investigation. This marked the fastest start among the three special prosecutors.
After indicting Kim Yong-hyun, the special prosecutor team quickly turned its attention to Yoon Suk Yeol, who was at the center of the allegations.
On July 10, just three weeks after the investigation began, the team secured custody of former President Yoon Suk Yeol. This came 124 days after he had been released following a court decision to cancel his arrest warrant.
Following Yoon Suk Yeol, the team indicted former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min on charges of participating in key insurrection duties, but failed to secure the custody of other cabinet members.
Arrest warrants for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae, People Power Party lawmaker Choo Kyung-ho, and former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn were all rejected, leading to criticism that the investigation was overly aggressive.
Since August, the only individual taken into custody was former National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Cho Tae-yong, who was indicted not for insurrection but for violations of the National Intelligence Service Act and other charges.
In the treason investigation, although the team was unable to prove collusion with North Korea for foreign currency inducement, for the first time, a former president was indicted on general espionage charges.
The special prosecutor team concluded that Yoon Suk Yeol and Kim Yong-hyun heightened military tensions by provoking North Korea, which remains under an armistice, in order to justify declaring martial law.
The secret operation involving North Korean drones left frontline units inadequately prepared to respond to threats, which the team said compromised national security.
The timeline for Yoon Suk Yeol's consideration of martial law was also moved up during the investigation. The team determined that Yoon began contemplating emergency powers as early as November 2022, just six months after taking office, rather than in March or April 2024 as previously believed.
The team also believes that legal risks facing Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, were a motivating factor for the declaration of martial law.
Specifically, the investigation uncovered evidence that Yoon and his wife directly contacted former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae to discuss their legal risks, including the receipt of luxury bags, allegations of stock price manipulation involving DEUTSCH MOTORS INC., and interference in the investigation of a fallen marine.
Regarding suspicions of obstructing the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea’s vote to lift martial law, former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon and other lawmakers refused to cooperate with the investigation, forcing the team to request pretrial witness examinations. Although Han Dong-hoon never complied, after interviewing some lawmakers privately, the team indicted Choo Kyung-ho.


kyu0705@fnnews.com Kim Dong-gyu Reporter