Teacher Falsely Accused of Espionage During Chun Doo-hwan Regime Acquitted After 41 Years

Gwangju District Court Acknowledges Illegal Detention and Harsh Treatment
Served 13 Years in Prison, Died from Aftereffects

Moon Cheoltae, a dispatched teacher who was falsely accused of espionage after enduring brutal torture and threats by the National Security Planning Agency (NSPA) during the Chun Doo-hwan regime, has been acquitted and restored his honor in a retrial held after his death, more than 40 years later.

The court ruled that confessions obtained through illegal arrest and harsh treatment were inadmissible as evidence and delivered a not-guilty verdict. Following the acquittal of his son earlier in January this year, both father and son have now been fully cleared of their wrongful charges.

On June 10, the 13th Criminal Division of the Gwangju District Court (Presiding Judge Lee Jeongho) announced that it had acquitted the late Moon Cheoltae in a retrial. Moon had previously been convicted of violating the Anti-Communist Law and the National Security Act.

Gwangju District Court Building.

Moon, who was dispatched by the Ministry of Education (formerly the Ministry of Education and Culture) to Osaka, Japan as a teacher in the 1970s, was prosecuted for allegedly meeting with members of anti-state organizations, such as the principal of Kumgang Academy affiliated with the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), and for receiving orders from them.

Moon was sentenced to life imprisonment in the original trial in 1985 and served 13 years in prison before being paroled in 1998. He suffered from the aftereffects of prolonged incarceration and torture and eventually passed away in 2018. At the time, his son, Moon Youngseok (now 65), who was studying abroad, was also indicted and unjustly imprisoned on charges of engaging in pro-North activities while traveling between Korea and Japan.

This father and son's tragedy was the result of a 'fabricated case' orchestrated by the NSPA's abuse of state power. In 2024, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission concluded that the NSPA had deliberately fabricated the espionage case against Moon after he refused to cooperate as an informant, designating the incident as a grave human rights violation. Investigations revealed that the two were illegally arrested and detained by NSPA investigators and subjected to severe mistreatment, such as being deprived of sleep.

At the final retrial hearing, prosecutors took the unusual step of requesting an acquittal, stating that "there is no evidence to prove the charges."

The court also explained, "It is clearly established that Moon and his son were illegally arrested and detained by NSPA investigators, and it is difficult to rule out the possibility that they were subjected to harsh treatment during the investigation. Statements made to investigative authorities and in court under unlawful physical detention cannot be considered voluntary, and since there is no evidence to support the charges, this constitutes a case where the crime is not proven."

Meanwhile, in January this year, before his father’s retrial, Moon’s son was also acquitted by the Gwangju High Court, lifting the disgraceful label of 'family spy ring' that had haunted their family for over four decades, both during their lifetimes and after death.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.