Senior presidential security official denies he interfered with executing Yoon arrest warrant

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Senior presidential security official denies he interfered with executing Yoon arrest warrant

Kim Shin, a senior official of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), speaks to the press at the headquarters of the National Office of Investigation (NOI) in Seodaemun District, western Seoul on Jan. 20. [NEWS1]

Kim Shin, a senior official of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), speaks to the press at the headquarters of the National Office of Investigation (NOI) in Seodaemun District, western Seoul on Jan. 20. [NEWS1]

 
Kim Shin, a senior official with the Presidential Security Service (PSS), denied on Monday allegations of interfering with executing an arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk Yeol. 
 
At 10 a.m. on the same day, Kim spoke to reporters at the National Police Agency’s National Office of Investigation (NOI) headquarters in Seodaemun District, western Seoul, where he showed up to a summons from the police. 
 

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Kim is under investigation for allegedly obstructing special public duties during the first attempt by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) and the police to execute an arrest warrant for Yoon on Jan. 3.
 
When asked if the directive to block the execution of the arrest warrant came from the president, he said, "I don't think so.”
 
"The president, the head of the security service, the deputy head and the head of the security headquarters consistently emphasized that there should be no casualties,” said Kim.  
  
Kim denied accusations of obstructing the execution of an arrest warrant against Yoon. He said that "the agency head issued an order to deny" entry into the official residence for the execution of the warrant and "following directives is an obligatory part of the operational manual." 
 
Kim did not comply with the first police summons for questioning on Jan. 14. Investigators notified Kim of a second summons on Jan. 17.  
 
Kim addressed his failure to comply with the first summons, saying that he "submitted a letter of explanation" that stated that he was "responsible for carrying out security duties" at the time. 
 
Kim is considered one of the hard-liners who opposed the execution of Yoon's arrest warrant within the PSS, alongside acting chief Kim Seong-hoon and head of the service Lee Kwang-woo.
 
The police have booked five current and former leaders of the PSS, including former director Park Jong-joon and Security and Safety Bureau head Lee Jin-ha, on charges of obstructing special public duties.
 
The police executed arrest warrants for acting chief Kim and Lee Jin-ha. Kim was released after the police's detention warrant request was denied. No detention warrant was requested for Lee Jin-ha.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]
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