Special Investigation Team Intensifies Probe into Former Defense Minister's Alleged Escape to Australia

The Marine Corps Special Investigation Team is ramping up its investigation into the alleged escape of former Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop to Australia amid suspicions of external pressure in the investigation of a deceased Marine's case. On July 13, legal sources reported that the Special Investigation Team summoned a diplomat from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a witness to examine the circumstances surrounding Lee's appointment as ambassador to Australia and his subsequent departure. The inquiry aims to determine whether Lee's appointment was intended to obstruct investigations by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO).

Lee was reported to the CIO in September 2023 and was under a travel ban when he was appointed ambassador in March 2024. The Special Investigation Team suspects that former President Yoon Suk-yeol may have directed Lee's appointment to evade the ongoing investigation. Officials from the presidential office are also under scrutiny for allegedly involving Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Justice Ministry personnel in the appointment and lifting of the travel ban.

Just three days after his appointment, Lee was released from the travel ban and left for Australia following an investigation by the CIO. However, amid controversy over his 'escape,' he returned voluntarily just 11 days later and resigned from his ambassadorial position. During the controversy, the presidential office claimed ignorance of Lee's travel ban and attributed delays in the CIO investigation to mismanagement. Former President Yoon mentioned in a Constitutional Court impeachment trial that he was frustrated by the situation, having sent Lee to Australia to secure a deal for a naval vessel.

The Special Investigation Team plans to further investigate whether there were any illegal directives or external pressures from the presidential office regarding Lee's appointment and the lifting of his travel ban. Additionally, the team conducted a search at the Army Headquarters in Gyeryong, South Chungcheong Province, targeting officials involved in the retrieval of the investigation results related to the deceased Marine case, which had been transferred to the police in August 2023.