The former Commissioner of the Korea Coast Guard and a senior official, both suspected of participating in an insurrection during the period of emergency martial law, have avoided arrest.

Lee Jong-rok, a judge at the Seoul Central District Court specializing in warrants for insurrection cases, dismissed the arrest warrants for former Coast Guard Commissioner Kim Jong-wook and former Planning and Coordination Officer Ahn Seong-sik today (July 3) after holding a pre-arrest interrogation.

The court explained the dismissal by stating, "There is room for dispute regarding the criminal charges, and in light of the progress of the investigation, it is difficult to see a risk of evidence destruction or flight."

Ahn, who graduated from the same high school as former President Yoon Suk Yeol, Chungam High School, is accused of changing internal regulations since 2023 to ensure the Coast Guard would be automatically integrated into the Martial Law Joint Investigation Headquarters in coordination with the Defense Security Command.

Investigations revealed that after the declaration of emergency martial law, Ahn advocated for reviewing the carrying of firearms to protect Coast Guard substations and increasing the number of personnel dispatched to the Joint Investigation Headquarters during a video conference of commanders nationwide.

Testimony also emerged that after the meeting, Ahn instructed, "Clear out and prepare the detention cells as it seems many martial law offenders will be coming."

The Kwon Chang-young Special Prosecutor team viewed these actions as participation in or collusion with the insurrection, and requested arrest warrants for Ahn on charges of aiding and abetting insurrection and abuse of power.

Former Commissioner Kim is accused of tacitly approving Ahn's proposal to increase dispatched personnel and ordering the dispatch of a liaison officer to the Martial Law Command's Public Safety Division as the top official of the Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard dispatched one inspector-level employee to the Martial Law Command's Public Safety Division as a government liaison officer at approximately 1:50 a.m. the day after martial law was declared, following a request from the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

This occurred 50 minutes after the National Assembly had already passed a resolution to lift the emergency martial law.

Upon being notified that the situation had been resolved, the Coast Guard terminated the liaison dispatch, and it was determined that the officer returned before reaching the Martial Law Command.

The special prosecutor team also secured testimony that Kim ignored a subordinate's objection to the dispatch and ordered, "Dispatch at least one person."

Special Prosecutor Kwon Young-bin stated while attending the warrant hearing, "It has been confirmed that the Coast Guard collected various information and actively participated even without receiving specific instructions."

However, with only three weeks remaining until the end of the investigation period, the failure to secure the custody of Kim and Ahn has led to observations that setbacks in the investigation are inevitable.

Some have pointed out that the Comprehensive Special Prosecutor team excessively reinvestigated a case that had already been cleared of charges by the previous special prosecutor team.

Previously, the special prosecutor team that investigated the allegations related to Ahn had decided not to indict him after conducting search and seizure operations and summons, concluding that the charges were not substantiated.

The subsequently launched Comprehensive Special Prosecutor team claimed, "We reopened the case that the previous team decided not to indict and confirmed the charges through supplementary investigations," and conducted further search and seizure operations while expanding the scope of the investigation to include Kim.

Meanwhile, the Comprehensive Special Prosecutor team has requested the National Assembly to amend the Special Prosecutor Act to allow for a 30-day extension of the investigation period.

Having commenced its investigation on February 25, the Comprehensive Special Prosecutor team has already extended the investigation period twice and is scheduled to conclude on July 24.

(Photo: Yonhap News)