Special Prosecutor for Fallen Marine Appeals Acquittal in 'Lee Jongseop Ambassador to Australia' Case

"Error in Assessing Intent and Conspiracy to Aid Escape"

The Special Prosecutor's Office for the Death of Marine Lee Myung-hyun has appealed the first trial verdict acquitting former President Yoon Seok-yeol and others, who were indicted on charges of involvement in the appointment of former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop as ambassador to Australia and his subsequent departure from the country.

On September 17, the special prosecutor’s team announced that it had filed an appeal against the first trial verdict in the so-called “ambassador to Australia aiding and abetting escape case.” The team explained that after reviewing the trial records, the verdict, and Supreme Court precedents regarding the offense of aiding and abetting a criminal to escape justice, they found it difficult to accept the court's decision.

Former President Yoon Seok-yeol (left) and Former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop. Photo by The Asia Business Daily DB

Previously, the Seoul Central District Court’s Criminal Agreement Division 22 (presiding judge Cho Hyung-woo) acknowledged several facts, including that former President Yoon Seok-yeol had been “furious,” and that after former Minister Lee Jong-seop was reported to the High-ranking Officials’ Corruption Investigation Office and became subject to investigation, Yoon instructed former National Security Office chief Cho Tae-yong and others to arrange for Lee to be appointed as ambassador to Australia. The court also recognized most of the key facts presented by the special prosecutors, including that Lee Si-won, former presidential secretary for civil service discipline, and others lifted the travel ban on Lee Jong-seop.

However, the court found that these facts alone were insufficient to constitute the crime of aiding and abetting escape, or similar offenses. Accordingly, all six defendants—including former President Yoon—were acquitted.

The special prosecutor’s team criticized the first trial for failing to acknowledge the defendants’ intent to help Lee Jong-seop evade justice or any conspiracy among them. Since individuals involved in the order to retrieve records from the death of Sergeant Chae Sang-byeong were also involved in the process of appointing Lee as ambassador and his departure from the country, the team argued that these actions should not be assessed in isolation when determining whether the crime of aiding and abetting escape was committed.

The special prosecutor’s team further stated, “For individuals with such relationships to be believed to have had no intention to conceal Lee Jong-seop’s whereabouts, there must be clear, corresponding evidence. The first trial failed to fully examine the special nature of these relationships and instead assessed each individual act merely as ordinary performance of duty, missing the essence of the overall case.”

The special prosecutor's team added, “The case is extremely grave and the nature of the crime is egregious, as it involved shielding a key criminal suspect by assigning him to a senior diplomatic post overseas, thereby undermining the criminal justice process. We will do our utmost to prosecute the case in the appeals court.”

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