The National Intelligence Service asked the Democratic Party of Korea to restore its authority to investigate crimes of North Korean and foreign espionage, which was transferred to the police early last year, after former President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched imposition of martial law.
According to a Democratic Party lawmaker, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, a high-level NIS official visited him on Dec. 20, 2024, less than three weeks after Yoon's martial law declaration, and asked for the intelligence agency's investigative authority to be restored.
The lawmaker said that NIS officials have asked for revisions in the law to bring back the agency's investigative authority several times since.
In January last year, the authority to investigate crimes related to espionage was transferred to the police from the NIS as a part of efforts by the previous Moon Jae-in administration to reform the intelligence agency.
According to the lawmaker, the NIS is already guaranteed "a fairly vast scope" of activities for looking into foreign espionage. "The NIS can undertake a preliminary investigation. The police only handle arrest and referral to the prosecution for indictment," the lawmaker said.
The lawmaker said Yoon appeared to have exploited the NIS' desire to regain its investigative functions when he allegedly offered Hong Jang-won, former deputy director of the NIS, the power to investigate on the night of martial law.
According to prosecutors, Yoon called Hong shortly after announcing he was imposing martial law on TV and told the then-deputy director that he would give the intelligence agency the investigative powers to follow through with his orders.
"I think it was very fortunate for the country that Hong refused to take the bait and chose not to follow Yoon's orders," the lawmaker said.
arin@heraldcorp.com
