Col. Park Jeong-hoon, the former head of the Marine Corps investigation team, was acquitted Thursday on charges of mutiny against his superiors and defamation of a defense minister during his investigation into the death of a Marine corporal.
The Central District Military Court delivered the verdict Thursday morning, concluding a trial that lasted over a year since proceedings began in December 2023.
The case garnered widespread attention when Park revealed he had been instructed to exclude a key figure from his reports on the corporal's death. He claimed that this order had been made after President Yoon Suk Yeol had been angered by growing public criticism of the military's leadership. Allegations of interference by the presidential office have since propelled the case into the heart of political controversy.
The court ruled that the evidence presented by the prosecution was insufficient to prove that then-Marine Corps Commander Kim Gye-hwan, Park's boss, had explicitly ordered Park to withhold the transfer of the investigation results to the civilian police. It also found that Kim lacked the authority to suspend such a transfer. Additionally, the court determined that then-Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup’s directive to withhold the case was "an improper order."
The charges against Park stemmed from his investigation into the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun, who drowned during a search-and-rescue mission in a swollen river in Yecheon County, North Gyeongsang Province, following heavy rainfall in July 2023.
Park, who led the investigation, had concluded that the case should be transferred to civilian police in accordance with military law, which mandates that cases involving the deaths of military personnel be handled by civilian police and courts.
He also planned to pursue charges of manslaughter against Maj. Gen. Lim Seong-geun, commander of the 1st Marine Division, who had reportedly ordered the rescue team into the river wearing the division’s signature red athletic uniforms but without proper protective gear.
Park reported the results of his investigation and his plan to transfer the case to civilian police to Kim, who initially approved the plan. The plan was also initially approved by then-Minister Lee. However, Lee later reversed his decision, directing Kim to withhold the transfer and allegedly ordering the omission of manslaughter charges against Lim.
Despite consultations with Kim following Lee’s reversal, Park proceeded to transfer the case to the North Gyeongsang Provincial Police.
For Park's actions, the Defense Ministry's military prosecution team indicted him on Oct. 6, 2023, for defying Kim's orders not to transfer the investigation to police. Park defended himself at the time in interviews with the media by stating that he had not received explicit orders to withhold the transfer but had engaged in discussions to address the ministry’s directive to expedite the investigation.
In response, the military prosecutors added a defamation charge, accusing Park of damaging Lee’s honor by making false claims publicly.
Following Park's acquittal by the military court on Thursday, the Defense Ministry issued a statement saying it respects the court’s decision. The military prosecution has not yet disclosed whether it will appeal the ruling.
Park’s attorney, Kim Jeong-min, said at a press conference after the ruling, “Legally speaking, it would be appropriate for the Ministry of National Defense to forgo an appeal in this case.”
