South Korea’s former spymaster arrested over sea border killing

SEOUL – A former South Korean national security adviser was arrested on Saturday over his suspected manipulation of a 2020 case where a fisheries official was killed at sea by North Korean troops.

The murder case has sparked controversy, as the family of the official, Mr Lee Dae-jun, refuted claims by the administration of former president Moon Jae-in that he sought to defect to North Korea due to gambling debts, mental health issues and an unhappy life.

Mr Lee went missing in September 2020 from his boat near Yeonpyeong Island, about 10km south of the nautical border known as the Northern Limit Line.

The 47-year-old was fatally shot before being set on fire

in what was the first killing of a South Korean civilian by North Korea’s military in about a decade.

When President Yoon Suk-yeol took power in May, the Coast Guard and military retracted the previous claims and said

there was no evidence to support the conclusion that Mr Lee was trying to defect.

Prosecutors also launched an investigation into Mr Lee’s death and a 2019 case in which two North Korean fishermen were deported to North Korea against their will.

Mr Moon’s then national security advisor Suh Hoon, faces allegations that he ordered intelligence reports to be deleted to conceal Mr Lee’s killing and manipulated evidence to support the defection claim. 

The Seoul Central District Court, following a 19-hour deliberation, granted an arrest warrant for Suh on Saturday, citing “the gravity of the issue, the status of the suspect, and the risk of evidence destruction”.

Suh, who also served as a spy chief, declined to answer reporters’ questions when he appeared for the deliberation, but has denied the allegations and accused the Yoon government of political retaliation.

“It is unimaginable to manipulate a case that stakes a citizen’s life and honour,” Suh told a news conference in October, saying he made decisions based on analyses of intelligence and circumstantial evidence. 

Mr Yoon’s ruling People Power party said Mr Moon and his aides “not only let Lee die, but killed his honour by claiming his defection while treading on eggshells around (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un’s regime”.

“Now, only one person remains beyond the line of truth – former president Moon,” People Power said in a statement. 

Mr Yoon’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but has said prosecutors operate independently and it was not involved in their investigations. 

Suh’s arrest prompted debate among lawmakers over whether prosecutors would expand the investigation to seek criminal charges against Mr Moon, who prioritised inter-Korean reconciliation until his term ended in May. 

Mr Moon has denounced the investigation as “going too far” and issued a statement this week accusing the Yoon administration of making groundless claims and politicising security issues.

Mr Lee’s brother Rae-jin issued a statement refuting Mr Moon’s comment, saying his government failed to rescue Mr Lee and is now bent on “wordplay”.

He criticised Mr Moon for demanding evidence to show why his brother did not defect, without presenting any proof to back his own claim. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG