▲ Kim Tae-hyo, former First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, who is accused of participating in important duties of insurrection and abuse of power, arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu for his warrant review hearing on July 10.
Kim Tae-hyo, the former First Deputy Director of the National Security Office at the Presidential Office, has been arrested over allegations that he delivered messages justifying the martial law declaration to allied nations during the December 3 emergency martial law incident.
Bu Dong-sik, the presiding judge for insurrection warrant reviews at the Seoul Central District Court, issued the arrest warrant requested by the Kwon Chang-young 2nd Comprehensive Special Counsel Team today (July 10) after conducting a pre-arrest interrogation (warrant review hearing) for the former deputy director, stating that there is a "risk of destroying evidence."
Kim is accused of participating in important duties of insurrection and abuse of power by using foreign service officials to promote the legitimacy of the martial law declaration to major allies, including the United States, immediately after it was proclaimed.
It is reported that the messages at the time included claims such as "this measure is to protect liberal democracy" and "it was a political demonstration within the framework of the Constitution."
The special counsel team believes that former President Yoon Suk Yeol instructed former National Security Office Director Shin Won-sik and Kim to explain the background of the martial law declaration immediately after it was issued.
There are also allegations that the National Intelligence Service (NIS), having received the document justifying the martial law from the National Security Office, explained these contents to a senior official at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The special counsel team suspects that these processes were carried out under the instructions of former NIS Director Cho Tae-yong and former First Deputy Director Hong Jang-won.
With the special counsel team having secured custody of Kim, the related investigation is expected to gain further momentum.
The team is expected to use this as a stepping stone to accelerate its investigation into former President Yoon, who has been identified as the pinnacle of the allegations.
The investigation period for the special counsel team is set to end on July 24, but an amendment to the Special Counsel Act, which includes a 30-day extension of the investigation period, is currently pending in the National Assembly.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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