References to ‘inducing a North Korean attack’ found in ex-military official’s notes

Roh Sang-won, the head of the Defense Intelligence Command at the time, appears at a parliamentary inspection of the Defense Ministry on Oct. 5, 2023. (Hankyoreh file photo)

 By Lee Ji-hye (Hankyoreh)

A memo written by Roh Sang-won, the former head of the Defense Intelligence Command identified as the secret mastermind of the Dec. 3 insurrection attempt, contained the phrases “inducing a North Korean attack around the Northern Limit Line (NLL),” and “trash balloons.” With evidence pointing to attempts to stoke conflict with North Korea surfacing, police have stated that they are investigating President Yoon Suk-yeol, his former defense chief Kim Yong-hyun, and others on suspicions of treason.
 
Roh’s notebook also mentioned the “means of concentration and handling” of those who were to be arrested, even going so far as to suggest “execution by shooting.” Such drastic phrases suggest those plotting to punish so-called “anti-state forces” may not have been satisfied with simply detaining these figures.
 
The special unit investigating the martial law declaration under the Korean National Police Agency’s National Office of Investigation announced on [Dec. 23] that Roh’s notebook contained the phrase “inducing a North Korean attack around the Northern Limit Line (NLL).”
 
When asked by Democratic Party lawmaker Youn Kun-young whether “trash balloons” also appeared in Roh’s notebook during a plenary session of the parliamentary Public Administration and Security Committee on the same day, Woo Jong-soo, the head of the National Office of Investigation, confirmed that the phrase was spotted in the notebook.
 
This is the first time that a plot to provoke North Korea has been confirmed in the investigation into the Dec. 3 insurrection attempt.
 
“Yoon and Kim have been accused of aiding an enemy by providing military assistance, so we are investigating whether they are guilty of this crime,” an official from the special investigative unit stated. The Criminal Act stipulates that providing military benefit to the enemy is punishable by imprisonment if the military interests of South Korea are injured.
 
Roh’s notebook, obtained by the police, also contained details concerning the “blockade of the National Assembly” and described “politicians, journalists, religious leaders, members of trade unions, judges and public officials” as “targets for collection.” Some people were mentioned by their full names.

“References were made to the ‘means of concentration and handling’ of such figures,” the special investigative unit official stated.

Youn also asked whether “execution by shooting” was also mentioned in the notebook, to which Woo replied, “What you’ve mentioned is in line with what we have found through our investigation.” This demonstrates that Roh’s notebook contained plans to shoot and kill those arrested.
 
The police are identifying the burger joint brainstorming sessions for martial law which occurred on Dec. 1 and Dec. 3 at a Lotteria location, as a gathering of Roh’s private group within the intelligence command.
 
“It seems that a separate investigation team of around 60 people was formed within the [martial law command’s] joint investigation headquarters,” the official from the special investigative unit said. “We also secured a personnel appointment order for that team based on a document delivered by Kim [Yong-hyun] after the issuance of the martial law decree.”
 
Roh’s palm-sized notebook, which the police found during a raid on a fortune-telling shop located in a residential building that Roh was staying at in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, spans around 60 pages. An official with the special investigation unit said, “Roh is hardly giving any statements. We are proving his involvement in the case through testimonies from those who participated in the gatherings.”