Former Minister Lee Sang-min stands on the brink of detention over allegations that he ordered power and water cuts to some media outlets on the day of the Dec. 3 emergency martial law.
The Chief Judge Jeong Jae-wook of the Seoul Central District Court conducted a pre-arrest interrogation (review of the warrant) for former Minister Lee, who faces charges related to important duties in relation to insurrection, starting at 2 p.m. on the 31st. The hearing concluded after about four hours.
Former Minister Lee appeared at the Seoul Central District Court around 1:40 p.m. that day to attend the hearing. He did not answer reporters' questions such as 'Did you not order power and water cuts to the Fire Chief?' and 'What was the content of the document held by the Presidential Office?' and entered the court.
The Special Investigation Team dispatched six prosecutors, including Deputy Chief Yoo Yoon-je and Director General Kwon, to the hearing. The team plans to argue for the necessity of detention investigations by presenting a 160-page PowerPoint (PPT) document and closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage captured during the Cabinet meeting on the day of the martial law. Additionally, it has been reported that the team submitted a 300-page opinion document to the court on the 29th.
Earlier, the insurrection special investigation team requested an arrest warrant for former Minister Lee on the 28th on charges of important duties related to insurrection, abuse of authority, and perjury.
Former Minister Lee is accused of ordering the Fire Agency to implement power and water cuts to specific media outlets, including MBC, JTBC, Hankyoreh, and Kyunghyang Shinmun, on Dec. 3 last year under the instruction of former President Yoon Suk-yeol.
The Special Investigation Team has reportedly secured evidence that former Minister Lee received documents containing the instructions from former President Yoon and communication records indicating he instructed then-Fire Chief Heo Seok-gon on related content.
The Special Investigation Team also reportedly applied perjury charges against former Minister Lee. The team determined that he made false statements during the constitutional court impeachment trial of former President Yoon, asserting, 'I saw a paper note from a distance at the Presidential Office, but I have never seen a document with the details of the power and water cut.'
Meanwhile, the Special Investigation Team conducted a search of former Minister Lee's residence and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, as well as the Fire Chief's office on the 17th. It further summoned former Minister Lee as a suspect for about 18 hours and 40 minutes of questioning on the 25th.