▲ Kim Tae-hyo, former First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, who is accused of participating in important duties related to insurrection and abuse of power, arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu on July 10 for a pre-arrest interrogation (warrant review).
Kim Tae-hyo, the former First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, who is suspected of delivering messages justifying martial law to allied nations during the December 3 emergency martial law declaration, is facing a critical juncture regarding his potential arrest.
The judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court began the pre-arrest interrogation of Kim at 10:00 a.m. today (July 10) to determine the necessity of his detention.
Upon arriving at the court, Kim was asked whether he admitted to the charges of sending messages to justify martial law to allied nations and whether he had acted under the orders of former President Yoon Suk Yeol. He responded, "I will speak when there is an opportunity later."
Special Prosecutors Kwon Young-bin and Kim Ji-mi from the second comprehensive special counsel team attended the hearing.
Special Prosecutor Kim stated, "The Supreme Court confirmed yesterday (July 9) that the government's statement regarding the emergency martial law was incorrect," adding, "It has become clear that Kim's act of disseminating messages justifying martial law to foreign countries through Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials was also a wrongful act."
The Supreme Court ruled yesterday that former President Yoon was guilty of ordering the dissemination of false information to foreign media via Press Guidance (PG), which claimed that there was "no intention to destroy the constitutional order."
Kim is accused of promoting the legitimacy of the martial law declaration to major allies, including the United States, through foreign service officials immediately after the declaration was made.
The messages reportedly contained content such as, "This measure is to protect liberal democracy," and "It is a political demonstration within the constitutional framework in response to the National Assembly's attempt to paralyze the administration through impeachment motions and budget cuts, and to effectively destroy the constitutional order of the Republic of Korea. President Yoon Suk Yeol maintains a stance of opposing pro-North Korean leftists and anti-Americanism."
The special counsel team suspects that former President Yoon ordered former National Security Office Director Shin Won-sik and Kim to explain the background of the martial law declaration immediately after it was proclaimed.
Allegations have also been raised that the National Intelligence Service (NIS), having received the document justifying martial law from the National Security Office, explained these contents to a high-ranking official at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The special counsel team believes that former NIS Director Cho Tae-yong and former First Deputy Director Hong Jang-won issued orders during this process.
On July 7, the special counsel team requested an arrest warrant for Kim on charges of participating in important duties related to insurrection and abuse of power.
The comprehensive special counsel team has recently failed in consecutive attempts to secure the detention of other individuals, including a Coast Guard official suspected of involvement in the insurrection and the CEO of the interior design firm 21gram, who is linked to allegations regarding the relocation of the presidential residence.
With 7 out of 12 arrest warrant requests rejected by the court since the launch of the comprehensive special counsel, there is growing concern that the team may face criticism for conducting an overreaching investigation if the warrant for Kim is also dismissed.
The investigation period for the special counsel team is set to end on July 24, and an amendment to the Special Counsel Act, which would extend the investigation period by 30 days, has been submitted to the National Assembly.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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