Police Officer Destroys Son's Phone in Illegal Filming Case

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It has been belatedly revealed that a senior police officer destroyed the mobile phone of his son, who was caught red-handed for illegal filming. The incident came to light during a comprehensive investigation into cases involving police families, which was launched in the wake of the Chang Yoon-ki case.

Here is the report by reporter An Huijae.

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This is a post uploaded to the internal police network on the night of the 26th.

It stated that his high school son was caught attempting to illegally film a female teacher, and that, deeply shocked by the news that his innocent child had committed such an act, he broke the mobile phone.

According to SBS reporting, the author of the post was identified as Inspector A from a neighborhood police box in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province.

This practically amounts to a confession by a senior police officer that he concealed a mobile phone, which could be core evidence in an illegal filming crime. Following a complaint filed by the victimized female teacher, the police launched an investigation and forwarded Inspector A's son to the prosecution late last month, while recently booking Inspector A himself on charges of destroying evidence.

It is reported that following SBS reports exposing suspicions of investigative misconduct in the Chang Yoon-ki case—where the suspect had a police officer father—the police leadership rolled out reform measures, during which Inspector A's case was uncovered while comprehensively investigating cases involving police families.

The Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency initiated coercive investigations last week, including executing a search and seizure warrant on Inspector A's residence.

A police official explained that while punishment of direct blood relatives is not allowed under special provisions for family members, booking is still possible, adding that they are in the process of verifying suspicions of investigative interference, such as the destruction of evidence.

In the internal network post, Inspector A argued that comparing his case to the Chang Yoon-ki case was unfair and unjust. However, fellow police officers have reacted coldly, with comments such as "The victimized teacher is also someone's child" and "Do not adjust your hat under a plum tree" (meaning avoid giving cause for suspicion).

(Video reporting: Choi Dae-woong | Video editing: Choi Hye-ran | Design: Park Tae-young, Choi Ha-neul)

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