Dispute Over Special Prosecutor’s Mandate in ‘ONS Personnel Interference’ Trial: “Dismiss the Indictment” vs. “Related Case”

[Financial News] Former Senior Presidential Secretary for General Affairs Yoon Jae-soon and People Power Party lawmaker Lim Jong-deuk, who were indicted in 2023 on charges of meddling in personnel appointments at the Office of National Security (ONS), argued that their case does not fall within the investigative mandate of the Special Prosecutor Team for Insurrection and Treason led by Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-seok.
Criminal Division 23 of the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Judge Oh Se-yong, held the second preparatory hearing on the 6th for Yoon and Lim, who were indicted without detention on charges including abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights. Under the Criminal Procedure Act, defendants are not required to appear at preparatory hearings, and neither of them attended.
At the hearing, the defense teams for Yoon and Lim contended that the very filing of the indictment by the special prosecutor team was unlawful.
Yoon’s attorney argued, “There is no temporal connection whatsoever between the facts alleged in this indictment and the drone incident cited by the special prosecutor team, nor is there any substantive link between the two cases,” stressing, “This case cannot fall within the scope of the special prosecutor’s investigative mandate.”
Lim’s lawyer likewise maintained, “This case constitutes an unlawful separate investigation that exceeds the investigative authority granted under the Special Prosecutor Act, and the indictment was filed by a body without proper authority,” adding, “A judgment dismissing the indictment should rightly be handed down.”
The special prosecutor team immediately pushed back. The team responded, “Under the Special Prosecutor Act, evidence obtained pursuant to a warrant in connection with a common offense is expressly deemed to relate to associated crimes,” and continued, “On that basis, we reviewed whether this matter falls within the scope for initiating an investigation and proceeded to indict.”
The court indicated that it was cautious about ruling on a dismissal of the indictment at this stage, and stated that it would move forward with the main trial for now and consider the issue further depending on how the proceedings unfold.
The first full trial hearing is scheduled to begin in earnest on the 7th of next month.
According to the indictment, in September 2023 Yoon allegedly received a request from an acquaintance regarding the appointment of an officer in charge of drone force development and operational strategy, seconded to the Crisis Management Center of the Office of National Security (ONS). He is accused of then asking Lim, who at the time was the Second Deputy Director of the Office of National Security, and Lim Ki-hoon, then Presidential Secretary for National Defense, to have that officer appointed. Secondments to the ONS are normally made by the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea, which selects suitable candidates recommended by each branch of the armed forces. However, investigators found that the officer in question had not been among the recommended candidates, and that the appointment was made in an unusual manner by adding one more seconded position and selecting him for that extra slot.
theknight@fnnews.com Jung Kyung-soo Reporter