The special prosecutor team investigating allegations related to the appointment of former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop as ambassador to Australia will summon former Prosecutor General Sim Woo-jeong as a suspect.
The special counsel team on the fallen Marine case (Special Prosecutor Lee Myung-hyeon) said on the 29th that it will summon former Prosecutor General Sim as a suspect for questioning at 10 a.m. on the 30th.
Earlier, on 4th Aug., the special prosecutor team executed a search-and-seizure warrant against former Prosecutor General Sim. Sim was previously reported to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) on suspicion of involvement in the process in Mar. last year in which the travel ban on former Minister Lee was lifted and Lee departed the country.
Meanwhile, after Marine Corporal Chae died in the line of duty, former Minister Lee was reported to the CIO by the Democratic Party of Korea in Sep. 2023 on suspicion of exerting outside pressure during the transfer and retrieval of the Marine Corps Investigation Unit's case. It was reported that the CIO had imposed a travel ban on former Minister Lee, but on Mar. 4, 2023, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs appointed Lee as ambassador to Australia. Lee then left for Australia but returned after 11 days and resigned 25 days after being appointed ambassador.