Arrest warrant issued for former defense intelligence head over martial law plot
Published: 19 Dec. 2024, 11:23
Updated: 19 Dec. 2024, 16:08
![Noh Sang-won, former chief of the Defense Intelligence Command [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2024/12/19/c99471bf-53ae-4df1-bee6-05425aa22181.jpg)
Noh Sang-won, former chief of the Defense Intelligence Command [YONHAP]
A Seoul court issued an arrest warrant for Noh Sang-won, the former head of the Defense Intelligence Command, late Wednesday on charges of plotting an insurrection.
The Seoul Central District Court issued the warrants requested by the joint investigation headquarters on Tuesday, citing concerns that Noh might eliminate evidence or flee. Noh is accused of conspiring with former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, a senior from the Korea Military Academy, to plan the Dec. 3 martial law declaration.
The former commander is also accused of instructing then-Defense Intelligence Command head Moon Sang-ho, a junior from the Korea Military Academy, to prepare a special task force to seize the servers of the National Election Commission (NEC) on the day of the martial law declaration.
Noh did not attend the warrant review hearing, which took place at 3 p.m. Wednesday. Moon was arrested at 12:20 p.m. the same day.
The martial law special investigation unit under the National Police Agency obtained footage showing four individuals — Noh, Moon and two colonels surnamed Kim and Jeong — meeting on Dec. 1 at a fast-food hamburger restaurant in Ansan, Gyeonggi, two days before martial law was declared.
"Someone said we should eat the hamburgers before talking, so we ate the burgers first," Colonel Jeong reportedly said during police questioning. “Noh then said we could secure evidence of election fraud if we checked the NEC server and told us, ‘You just need to go to the NEC’s computer room.’”
The joint investigation headquarters also has CCTV footage of the meeting.
Noh developed a relationship with Moon while serving as a member of the Blue House security for about a year during the Park Geun-hye administration.
Yeo In-hyung, head of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, also testified to the prosecution that "immediately after martial law was declared, former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun instructed former Defense Intelligence Command head Noh Sang-won to make contact."
Noh was relieved of his duties in 2018 after being sentenced to 18 months in prison for harassing a female cadet. He carried out the crimes on Oct. 1, 2018, the anniversary of the founding of Korea’s Armed Forces.
BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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