A public interest report alleging irregularities in the military command control system (C4I) during the emergency martial law period was submitted to the second special prosecutor team led by Kwon Chang-young shortly after its establishment in March. However, it was not until four months later that the incident was officially received. On the same day the whistleblower filed a formal complaint with the National Police Agency, the special prosecutor's office accepted the case and assigned it to a deputy special prosecutor.
According to a report by Aju Economy on July 27, Kim Hyun-seok expressed his intention to submit related materials and requested an investigation into the alleged non-use of satellite positioning reporting equipment (PRE) and signs of deviation from the military command control system since the early days of the special prosecutor's office in March.
The special prosecutor's office reportedly responded that they would discuss the report in a meeting with the deputy special prosecutors. However, as no further investigative procedures were initiated, Kim also shared the materials with some members of the Democratic Party and submitted similar allegations to the insurrection special prosecutor team led by Jo Eun-seok.
On July 20, Kim visited the special prosecutor's office in Gyeonggi Province to submit evidence directly, but he was unable to do so due to confusion surrounding the submission process. The office informed him that the National Police Agency was already investigating the related matters, making it difficult to accept his submission, and his request to have a record of the submission was also denied.
The special prosecutor's office later indicated that they would review the materials if submitted by mail, but even after the documents arrived via express delivery on July 21, the case was not immediately accepted.
The situation changed on July 24, when Kim electronically submitted a complaint to the National Police Agency regarding rebellion charges against former President Yoon Suk Yeol and others. He requested an investigation based on evidence of the non-use of PRE, materials related to the Special Warfare Command, and communication records.
That same day, around 5 p.m., the special prosecutor's office called Kim to request an explanation of the materials. After briefly explaining, Kim reiterated that he was the only one who could provide detailed information and expressed his desire to submit the materials and expedite the investigation.
However, he was informed by the special prosecutor's office that there was no time and that Deputy Special Prosecutor Kim Jung-min had not yet received the mail. Kim protested, stating, "I have been trying to submit materials since the early days, and you said it would be discussed in the deputy special prosecutor's meeting, didn't you?"
About an hour later, the special prosecutor's office officially accepted the case and assigned it to Deputy Special Prosecutor Kim Jung-min, who is responsible for military investigations.
Kim, a civilian engineer with nearly 30 years of experience in military communication system development, claims to have obtained evidence from military officials indicating that some military personnel did not use PRE during the technical support process following the emergency martial law.
Despite reporting this information to the National Assembly and the special prosecutor's office, Kim found himself under investigation for alleged violations of the Military Secret Protection Act, even facing a search and seizure.
One member of the National Assembly forwarded Kim's evidence to the insurrection special prosecutor for review related to the insurrection case, but the special prosecutor was unable to complete the investigation before the deadline expired. Consequently, the evidence transferred to the National Police Agency resulted in Kim facing investigation instead.
On July 23, the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy held a press conference, requesting protective measures for Kim as a whistleblower from the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and urging thorough investigations into the circumstances surrounding the non-use of PRE by the special prosecutor's office and the National Police Agency.
Kim stated, "It has been nearly five months since I first offered to submit the materials, and I attempted to submit them in person, but the case was delayed. We must clarify why the military command system did not function properly at that time based on the relevant materials."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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