Marine suicide again, chief talks of responsibility

The Marine Corps is in shock after another officer was found dead in his office early yesterday and the commander of the Marines hinted he may resign.

A Marine Corps second-division sergeant major surnamed Bae, 48, was found hanged in his office in Gimpo, Gyeonggi, at 5:55 a.m., yesterday, by a fellow marine on the base, the Marine Corps said.

Military authorities said they sent his body to the National Forensic Service for an autopsy. He is suspected to have committed suicide because of personal problems, but no suicide note was found.

Although the sergeant major was in the same division as the marine who last week killed four fellow soldiers and tried to blow himself up with a hand grenade, authorities said the suicide was likely to be unrelated to the shooting spree because they occurred on different bases.

Investigators are now questioning family members and other people who knew the sergeant major.

According to the Defense Ministry, an average of around 100 soldiers committed suicide each year from 2005 to 2010. Many are young men doing their compulsory military service.

The Army said Wednesday that a lance corporal surnamed Lee, 21, killed himself in his barracks on July 4 after telling his family that he was suffering in the service.

Yoo Nak-jun, commander of the Marines, told Minister of National Defense Kim Kwan-jin during a reporting session on July 12 that he would “take all responsibility for the recent case,” referring to the shooting spree at the base on Ganghwa Island, according to the Marine Corps. The Defense Ministry denied yesterday that Yoo expressed his intention to resign.

By Christine Kim [christine.kim@joongang.co.kr]

한글 관련 기사 [중앙일보]

유낙준 해병사령관 사의 … 김관진 국방장관이 반려

2사단 공병대선 원사 자살

유낙준(해사 33기·중장) 해병대 사령관이 지난 12일 김관진 국방부 장관을 만난 자리에서 “책임질 부분이 있으면 책임지겠다”고 밝혔다. 이 발언이 14일 알려지면서 군 안팎에선 “유 사령관이 사의를 표명한 것”이란 얘기가 돌았다.

그러나 김 장관은 유 사령관에게 “병영문화 개혁을 책임지라”며 사의를 반려한 것으로 전해졌다.

한편 14일 오전 6시쯤 경기도 김포시 해병대 2사단 공병대대 사무실에서 배모(48) 주임 원사가 목을 매 숨진 채 발견됐다. 유서는 발견되지 않았다.