South Korea Arrests 2 Former Top Officials Over Fisherman’s Killing by North Korea in 2020

A North Korea flag flutters next to concertina wire at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on March 9, 2017. Edgar Su/Reuters

South Korea’s former defense minister and ex-coast guard chief were arrested Saturday for their alleged involvement in covering up the killing of a South Korean fisheries official by North Korea two years ago.

The Seoul Central District Court said it issued arrest warrants for former defense minister Suh Wook and former coast guard commissioner general Kim Hong-hee due to their flight risks, Yonhap News Agency reported.

They were arrested for abuse of power and falsifying official documents relating to the case of Lee Dae-jun, 47, who was fatally shot by North Korean troops while on duty on a fishing boat near the maritime border in September 2020.

The former Moon Jae-in administration concluded that Lee attempted to defect to North Korea due to his gambling debts, but the coast guard said in June that it found no evidence suggesting that Lee intended to defect.

Prosecutors alleged that Suh destroyed intelligence reports to impede the probe into Lee’s murder, while Kim was accused of using fabricated facts to conclude Lee’s motive to defect. Both of them denied the allegations.

Their arrest followed an investigation by the Yoon administration, which revealed that Lee was left in water for nearly six hours as he drifted in and out of consciousness after being found by North Korean troops.

The latest documents from the parliamentary investigation also found the coast guard, who was in charge at the time, violated rules during their initial rescue efforts by failing to seek help from other vessels and authorities nearby.

A state audit also requested prosecutors to investigate 20 officials from five agencies, including a former national security advisor and a former national intelligence service chief of the previous government, in relation to the case.

Probe Into 2019 Deportation of North Korean Fishermen

The Yoon administration is also investigating the repatriation of two North Korean fishermen in 2019. Yoon’s office accused the former government of ignoring domestic laws, which recognize North Koreans as South Korean citizens, and their rights to a fair trial.

The two fishermen fled to South Korea in 2019 and admitted to killing 16 other men aboard their vessel. They expressed a desire to defect, but the then-government of Moon Jae-in rejected their request as “insincere.”

Some critics claimed that former President Moon ordered their repatriation to appease North Korea’s government, following his administration’s efforts to resume peace talks with the nuclear-armed nation.

Reuters contributed to this report.