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CIO announce plans to extend Defense Intelligence Command head's detention

Published: 25 Dec. 2024, 15:04 Updated: 25 Dec. 2024, 15:06

Moon Sang-ho, chief of the Defense Intelligence Command, appears for an arrest warrant hearing at a military court in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Dec. 20. [NEWS1]

The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) plans to extend the detention period of Moon Sang-ho, head of the Defense Intelligence Command, and transfer the case to the military prosecution.

According to legal sources on Wednesday, the CIO has extended Moon's detention period, initially set to expire on Friday, and plans to hand over the case to the military prosecution as early as that day.

The CIO said it had filed a request with the military court the previous day to extend Moon's detention, which was approved. As a result, the detention period has been extended to Jan. 6.

Previously, prosecutors and the CIO had agreed to limit the detention period for suspects in the martial law incident to a maximum of 20 days. They also discussed transferring cases to the prosecution before the initial 10-day detention period upon which a mandatory extension request to the court is required.

With the end of the first 10-day detention period approaching in two days, the CIO decided to secure an extension and transfer the case to the military prosecution before the initial period expired, adhering to the prior agreement.

“We determined that directly transferring the case to the military prosecution for indictment — rather than passing it through the regular prosecution first — would be more efficient in terms of time and compliance with legal procedures,” said a CIO official.

Police arrested Moon on charges including insurrection on Dec. 15. However, prosecutors refused to approve the arrest, citing violations of the Military Court Act. They emphasized that coercive measures against active-duty military personnel, like Moon, require warrants issued by a military court and must be executed by military police or prosecutors.

After being released, Moon underwent additional questioning by police before his case was transferred to the CIO, which worked in collaboration with the police to form the joint investigation headquarters.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]