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A Seoul court on Friday held a hearing to review an arrest warrant request for former Coast Guard chief Kim Jong-uk, who is suspected of complicity in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law bid in 2024. The Seoul Central District Court took up the request from the special counsel team led by Kwon Chang-young, which has been investigating the circumstances surrounding the December 2024 martial law declaration.

Coverage comparison

Yonhap News Agency reported that the special counsel's team formally requested the warrant on July 1, alleging that Kim convened a virtual conference of Coast Guard leadership shortly after Yoon declared martial law on Dec. 3, 2024, to discuss dispatching investigators to a joint martial law investigation headquarters. The agency also noted that the investigation into Kim was formally expanded to include him on June 10.

A separate arrest warrant hearing was scheduled for the same day for Ahn Sung-sik, former Coast Guard director general for planning and coordination, according to Yonhap. Ahn is accused of ordering officials to clear and reorganize detention facilities to prepare for an influx of detainees under the martial law order.

The two reports from Yonhap provide consistent details about the allegations and the legal proceedings, though they were published on different dates—July 1 and July 3—reflecting the progression of the case.

Key claims

  • Former Coast Guard chief Kim Jong-uk is alleged to have ordered a liaison officer to be dispatched to the martial law command set up under the decree on Dec. 3, 2024, as reported by Yonhap.
  • The special counsel team suspects Kim convened a virtual conference of the Coast Guard leadership shortly after martial law was declared to discuss sending investigators to a joint martial law investigation headquarters, according to Yonhap.
  • Ahn Sung-sik, former director general for planning and coordination, is accused of ordering officials to clear and reorganize detention facilities in anticipation of a large number of detainees under the martial law order, as reported by Yonhap.
  • Both warrant requests list charges of assisting an insurrection and abuse of power, according to Yonhap.
  • A previous special counsel team, led by Cho Eun-suk, decided not to press charges against Ahn due to insufficient evidence, but the current team reopened the probe after uncovering suspicions of complicity, Yonhap reported.