The special investigation team led by Cho Eun-seok filed for the arrest of the key suspect in the 'Pyongyang drone case,' Kim Yong-dae, the commander of the drone operations, but the warrant was rejected on the night of the 21st.
Nam Se-jin, the Director General of the Seoul Central District Court, conducted an examination of the detention warrant on that morning and said, "Considering that detention would excessively restrict the defendant's right to defense, it is difficult to recognize the grounds and proportionality for detention," thus rejecting the warrant requested by the special investigation team.
Director General Nam noted that "the defendant generally acknowledges the facts, basic evidence has been collected, and factors such as the defendant's attendance and statement attitude during the investigation, the defendant's background, residence, and family relations were also considered."
The court seems to have determined that detention was unnecessary, despite Kim's show of psychological instability, such as writing a will during the investigation by the special investigation team, as he has improved since then.
Kim is under suspicion of creating false documents to conceal the fact that drones were sent to North Korea in October of last year. According to a document entitled 'Reconnaissance Drone Team Proficiency Flight Training' disclosed by Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Bue Seung-chan, the drone unit stated that it conducted flights with two unmanned aerial vehicles (drone No. 74 and No. 75) on October 15 of last year.
However, in reality, only drone No. 75 flew, and there were internal testimonies indicating that there was a directive from superiors stating to report that drone No. 74 "disappeared under circumstances unknown during normal flight." The lost drone No. 74 is believed to have crashed in Pyongyang six days ago, and the suspicion by the special investigation team is that they possibly fabricated a loss to conceal the fact of sending the drones to North Korea. Kim is also accused of deleting flight log records and removing flyers attached to the drone.
Kim's side acknowledged most of the facts but urged consideration as it was an unavoidable action for military confidential operations. They argued that, as a soldier, there is no risk of escape and psychological stability has been fully restored, asserting that issuing a detention warrant could have significant burdens on national diplomatic security.
The special investigation team is expected to closely review the reasons for rejection of the detention warrant before deciding whether to file for it again. They view Kim as a key figure in revealing former President Yoon's foreign exchange suspicions. The special investigation team's probe into foreign exchange is focused on allegations that former President Yoon bypassed the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to directly instruct the drone unit to deploy drones to Pyongyang in October of last year in an effort to create justification for declaring a state of emergency. Following a full-scale raid on the drone unit and the Ministry of National Defense on the 14th, they are collecting testimonies from military officials.
Special Investigator Park Ji-young stated during a briefing that "the drone issue is directly connected to national security and interests, thus extreme caution is being practiced during the investigation," and added that "interrogations of subjects requiring extreme security are being conducted within military premises."
Depending on the investigation's progress, there is a possibility that former President Yoon could face additional charges related to foreign exchange. The special investigation team had previously filed for Yoon's arrest and prosecution for abuse of power on the 19th but did not apply the foreign exchange charges for further investigation.