"LIG and DAPA" Largest Defense Corruption Scandal Ever Uncovered... Why the Criticism Over Shoddy Investigation? [News File]

460 million won in bribes received by a DAPA official, executives of a major defense company indicted, irregularities in 6 projects worth 91.5 billion won, unfair practices in a 1.7 trillion-percent electronic warfare project... A massive defense corruption scandal has broken out in which executives of LIG D&A, a leading player in K-defense, provided bribes laundered through subcontractors to a Grade 5 civil servant at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), and in return swept up numerous weapons projects. Judging by the bribe amounts, the scale of the involved projects, and the profiles of the defendants, this is the largest defense corruption scandal in the history of K-defense.

While this is likely the result of meticulous investigation by the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, criticisms are emerging not only from the defense industry but even within DAPA that something still feels lacking. Even the DAPA Administrator cannot comprehend how a single Grade 5 official at DAPA could pull off such a massive feat. Suspicions are brewing in the defense industry that the individuals involved from LIG D&A are ultimately just scapegoats. The criticism is that this was a shoddy investigation that failed to reach the substance and the essence.

K-defense has been walking on clouds, intoxicated by national pride and covered in bubbles, only to reveal its true bottom line through a series of failed overseas orders. This massive defense corruption scandal has erupted right at the timing for a fresh start. The rotten roots must be thoroughly pulled out to make a fresh and clean start.

Prosecutors stated that DAPA official A, who was arrested, skewed scores in favor of LIG D&A, allowing the company to secure six projects worth 91.5 billion won. Among these, three projects are research tasks to develop electronic warfare-related technologies. Prosecutors determined that thanks to carrying out these three electronic warfare-related projects, LIG D&A was able to secure a 1.7 trillion won electronic warfare project. Because this was corruption that made a mockery of critical security projects through bribes, prosecutors defined this case as a major anti-state crime.

The crimes began in late 2021. According to LIG D&A, Vice President B and Managing Director C, who were indicted, were not executives at that time. Senior figure B became an executive in January 2023, about a year after the crimes started. In effect, they began committing major anti-state crimes back when they were non-executives and regular employees. Even by the end of the crimes in late 2025, B held only the rank of managing director.

Voices in the defense industry are piling up, such as: "It is simply implausible that corporate managing- or general manager-level employees risked their lives and committed major anti-state crimes out of a zealous ambition for work," "This is a scapegoating method to protect the higher-ups," and "The current CEO is also a novice in his first term and probably could not make a big decision, so prosecutors need to look much higher up." In particular, the senior-ranking indicted executive B is a research specialist far removed from taking risks to win projects through crime. Could there have been intervention from higher-ups? LIG D&A stated, "The CEO was not investigated."

DAPA acknowledges that this incident is the largest defense corruption scandal in history. At the same time, however, DAPA is brushing off the case as an act of personal deviance. In doing so, it exhibits a contradiction by simultaneously tilting its head in confusion, asking, "How on earth could a single Grade 5 official pull this off alone?"

DAPA must not overlook the possibility of additional DAPA employees being involved. The individuals drawing the most attention are members of the so-called KK group, composed of ROTC officers who graduated from a specific high school and a specific university in the Yeongnam region. Arrested DAPA Grade 5 official A belongs to KK, and there are several others at DAPA besides A. Having graduated from the same high school, the same university, and even tied together through ROTC, it is only human nature for them to be close and special to one another. Members of KK are also known to work at the Agency for Defense Development and LIG D&A.

During a meeting with reporters on the 18th, DAPA Administrator Lee Yong-chul said, "Currently, there are fewer than 10 KK members at DAPA, and in the past, they had a close and thick relationship among themselves," adding, "Now, their personal exchanges have been cut off." It was a truly awkward remark to hear. When a ultra-large corruption scandal erupts and suspicious gazes are sharp, asking KK members, "Are you close among yourselves?" will inevitably draw the response that "we are distant" even if the sky were to fall. For the DAPA Administrator to take such self-serving claims at face value and conclude that "personal exchanges have been cut off"... Following the personal deviance theory, a KK detachment theory has now emerged.

Administrator Lee Yong-chul also remarked, "It makes no common sense that (LIG D&A) would give so much money to someone around the level of a civil service officer." Most people in the defense industry feel the same way. There is a need to further examine whether there are any additional related personnel within DAPA. As mentioned earlier, there is also the possibility of LIG D&A cutting off a scapegoat tail. That is why criticisms of a shoddy investigation are being raised even though the largest defense corruption scandal in history has been uncovered.

The Suwon District Prosecutors' Office needs to listen closely to these voices from the defense industry. As the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office noted in its press release, if it wants to prevent defense corruption from ever taking root in this land again, and if it wants to help K-defense recover—which has been wandering ungrounded on clouds engulfed in national pride and bubbles—the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office needs to pierce through this case horizontally and vertically once more.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.