The prosecution logo is seen on the window of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul, Oct. 13. The prosecution is under increasing pressure to investigate former President Moon Jae-in as questions emerge over who ordered the deletion of intelligence reports giving an important clue to how the fisheries official ended up in North Korea's waters, where he was shot dead two years ago. Newsis

Questions arise over who ordered deletion of fisheries official intelligence reports

By Jung Min-ho

The prosecution is under increasing pressure to investigate former President Moon Jae-in as questions emerge over who ordered the deletion of intelligence reports potentially containing clues as to how the fisheries official ended up in North Korea's waters, where he was shot dead two years ago.

One of the key findings announced last week by the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) was that the official was wearing a life jacket emblazoned with Chinese letters ― a product that cannot be found in the South Korean market. This information debunks the very basis on which the Defense Ministry argued that he, unlike other officials, was wearing a life jacket while on duty on a fishery inspection boat before jumping into the sea to defect to North Korea. Also, none of the life jackets on that boat were missing.

Yet, such critical information was deliberately omitted from official reports in a coordinated effort to frame him as a defector, which prompted former Defense Minister Suh Wook and former National Intelligence Service Director Park Jie-won to unlawfully remove intelligence documents from the case, according to the state auditor.

Ruling party lawmakers believe that such a coordinated move would have been impossible without former President Moon Jae-in's direct order and are calling on the prosecution to investigate him.

Kim Haeng, center, a member of the People Power Party's emergency measure committee / Newsis

"If former President Moon Jae-in left him in the hands of North Korea for the sake of an end-of-war agreement, it would be a clear act of treason." Kim Haeng, a member of the People Power Party's emergency measure committee, said during a meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday. "The fabrication of evidence and deletion of intelligence reports would have been impossible without Moon's orders."

It is unclear where the official got the life jacket with Chinese letters on it. The BAI's report shows he may have received it from one of the Chinese fishing boats in the area. On Sept. 22, 2020, he was found by the North Korean military, which killed him and burned his body ― about three hours after he was reported missing to Moon.

Rep. Jeong Jeom-sig, head of the emergency committee, said investigators should find out what the former president did ― and didn't do ― during that critical period.

"If Moon is blameless, he should cooperate with the investigation, and the prosecution must look into him," he said. "All people are equal before the law. Anyone, including a president, should be investigated if he committed a criminal act."

When asked to answer questions in regard to the case by the BAI earlier this month, Moon said such an attempt was "very rude." Opposition lawmakers have been calling it as "a political revenge" by the Yoon Suk-yeol administration.

The opposition Democratic Party of Korea, which holds a majority in the Assembly, said the ongoing investigations into the cases involving North Korea under the Moon administration were politically motivated; the party threatened to file a complaint against the BAI with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, known as CIO, and to limit its powers through legislation.

The previous day, Rep. Choe Jae-hyeong, former BAI chief, said in a statement that it will be necessary to investigate Moon to find the whole truth behind the incident.

"The BAI's recent findings show [the Moon administration] didn't do anything to save his (the fisheries official's) life during the three hours and tried to portray the case as a defection based on false information … It seems that the deleted intelligence reports probably contained information suggesting otherwise," he said.