Korea Coast Guard officer Lee Jae-seok, who died in the line of duty while rescuing an elderly person stranded on tidal flats, prompted Korea Coast Guard Administrator Kim Yong-jin to offer his resignation, saying he felt a heavy sense of responsibility.
Administrator Kim said in an official statement distributed to the media late on the 15th that he felt a heavy sense of responsibility regarding the death in the line of duty and the president's remarks, and that he was offering his resignation to help uncover the truth of the incident and build a new Korea Coast Guard.
President Lee Jae-myung on the day ordered that the case be entrusted to an independent outside body for a thorough investigation. Presidential office Spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said Lee noted testimony from the deceased's colleagues that "higher-ups are covering up the truth," and he issued the order so that the bereaved family and colleagues would not suffer injustice.
Sergeant Lee, who was assigned to the Yeongheung police substation at the Incheon Coast Guard, went missing at about 3:30 a.m. on the 11th while rescuing A, a Chinese national in their 70s, who was stranded on tidal flats on Yeongheung Island in Ongjin County, Incheon. Lee was found in cardiac arrest about six hours later, was taken to a hospital, and died. During the rescue, as the water rose to waist level, he reportedly took off his own flotation vest to hand over and headed toward land together, when the accident occurred.
Four members of the duty team who worked with Lee on the day of the accident held a press conference at the funeral hall that day and said they had been instructed by the Yeongheung substation chief to keep quiet about the case because Lee needed to be made a "hero." They claimed the substation chief told subordinates that if they saw the bereaved family, they should "shed tears, say nothing, and stay quiet."
There are also claims that the Coast Guard violated multiple relevant rules in connection with Lee's death in the line of duty. The substation not only failed to follow its internal rule requiring two-person dispatches, but also reportedly granted staff more break time than regulations allow during the same time slot. At the time of the accident, there were six officers on duty at the substation, but because four were on break, only two people, including Lee and the duty Head of Team, were working.
Around 2 a.m. on the 11th, during the others' break time, Lee received a report from a drone patrol company that "a person is sitting on the tidal flats," went to the scene alone, went missing during the rescue, and ultimately died. The Yeongheung substation is believed to have reported the incident to a higher authority at 3:30 a.m., about 80 minutes after Lee was dispatched to the scene on the day of the accident.