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Defense Ministry office raided over allegations it helped martial law troops

Published: 18 Feb. 2025, 15:42 Updated: 18 Feb. 2025, 15:51

LIM JEONG-WON
[email protected]

Police investigating the Dec. 3 martial law declaration walk into the office of former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min at the government complex in Sejong on Feb. 18. [NEWS1]

Prosecutors investigating the Dec. 3 martial law decree raided the Defense Ministry’s National Assembly cooperation office on Tuesday amid allegations that the office guided martial law troops into the National Assembly building on the day of the martial law decree.

Police also raided the residence and offices of former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min over his alleged role in the martial law declaration by impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday.

The Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office's special investigation headquarters handling the martial law probe said Tuesday that it raided the Defense Ministry’s National Assembly cooperation office and other locations in relation to insurrection allegations.

The raid's targets included the office and residence of the head of the National Assembly cooperation office at the Defense Ministry in Yongsan District, central Seoul. However, the National Assembly cooperation office’s branch office at the National Assembly building was not included in the raid.

Prosecutors are securing material to confirm whether the office in charge of cooperation between the Defense Ministry and the National Assembly participated in the insurrection by providing directions to martial law troops on Dec. 3, 2024.

The prosecution reported that former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun ordered former Capital Defense Commander Lee Jin-woo to blockade the National Assembly and to seek help from the head of the National Assembly cooperation office if necessary, and included the allegations in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s indictment.

A cooperation office official reportedly told prosecutors that the Capital Defense Command asked the office for directions at the time of the martial law declaration, but the office didn't actively respond because it believed the request was a problem.

Prosecutors plan to investigate whether the National Assembly cooperation office was aware of the martial law declaration in advance or attempted to destroy evidence.

At a Feb. 4 meeting of the National Assembly’s special committee investigating the martial law decree, Democratic Party Rep. Youn Kun-young alleged that former Defense Minister Kim stayed a while at the cooperation office’s branch office at the National Assembly the day before the martial law decree and that cooperation office personnel were captured on CCTV when martial law troops entered the National Assembly on Dec. 3.

Youn also said he received a tip that the cooperation office's head entered the closed branch office the day after martial law was imposed and that he may have concealed or destroyed evidence.

Police on Tuesday separately raided the office and residence of former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min over suspicions that he ordered that power and water be cut to major media outlets immediately after the martial law declaration. Police also raided the offices of National Fire Agency Commissioner Heo Seok-gon and Deputy Commissioner Lee Young-pal.

Lee, who was indicted on insurrection charges, is being investigated by the police for allegedly ordering power and water to be cut to media outlets critical of the Yoon administration.

During Yoon's impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court on Feb. 11, Lee testified that he never tried to cut electricity or water to media outlets and never received instructions to do so.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]