At the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, Inspector Baek Hae-ryong, who investigated allegations that customs drug probes were covered up for three months, issued a statement on the 14th, the last day of a dispatch assignment. Baek claimed the very dispatch to the government joint investigation team was part of a conspiracy to bury the case.
At about 9:28 a.m. on the 14th, in front of the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office building, Baek told reporters, "This dispatch order itself was a planned conspiracy," and "I saw through it and tried not to comply, but as a public official I had circumstances that left me no choice but to comply."
Regarding why the dispatch was not extended, Baek said, "Neither the Baek Hae-ryong team nor the Supreme Prosecutors' Office wanted it. There was no instance of actively asking to end the dispatch," and added, "Because I confirmed the substance, I judged there was no reason to remain at the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office any longer and requested to be released from the dispatch."
Baek joined the joint investigation team in Oct. last year at the direction of President Lee Jae-myung. The original dispatch period was until Nov. 14 last year, but at Baek's request it was extended by two months, continuing through today.
As for what Baek wanted to say to Eastern District Chief Prosecutor Lim Eun-jeong, Baek said, "I will speak later," and added, "It's not appropriate to talk about an individual." From the first day of the dispatch, Baek labeled the joint investigation team an "illegal organization," clashing with Lim.
Baek intends to keep digging into the allegations even after returning to the police. Baek has asked agencies including the Korean National Police Agency to secure a physical space to manage the case records and continue the investigation. Baek said, "I requested it in official documents to the Korean National Police Agency, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and the Office for Government Policy Coordination, and I will wait for a response with expectations."
However, among these agencies, the Korean National Police Agency was reported to have dismissed the request, including by declining separate review. In that case, Baek will return to the original post as chief of the Hwagok police precinct at the Gangseo Police Station in Seoul and take on public safety duties.
Baek said, "I will work hard for local public safety," but added, "I have never once thought of abandoning the investigation. It may pause briefly, but those investigation records are with the Baek Hae-ryong team and will be kept at the Hwagok precinct."
Meanwhile, the joint investigation team last month announced interim findings of no charges on most of the allegations raised by Baek, and plans to release the final results soon.