A family member of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, who was missing last month off the coast of Soyeonpyeong Island at the northern end of the west sea, was killed by the North Korean military and requested the maritime police to stop the search for a body that lasted more than a month.
Lee Rae-jin, the elder brother of the missing civil servant A, told the Maritime Police Agency on the morning of the 29th, "Please stop the search for the body of his brother."
Lee said in his Facebook post today that he called the Coast Guard Rescue Safety Bureau and requested to stop searching for his younger brother's body, and that he made a decision because there were also grievances from fishermen in the West Sea 5 provinces.
Yesterday, Mr. Lee posted on Facebook saying,'I have been worried a lot when I heard the news that illegal Chinese ships are struggling in the West Sea recently.'
When Mr. A disappeared on the 21st of last month, the sea police sent ships and aircraft together with the navy to search the sea from the west of Yeonpyeong Island to the sea to the south of Socheong Island for more than a month, but could not find Mr. A's body or objects.
In addition to the search for the body, the Coast Guard also investigated the disappearance of Mr. A and concluded that he fled North Korea for the purpose of escape due to gambling and debt.
However, Mr. A's bereaved family and the opposition party opposed the results of the investigation by the Coast Guard, claiming that they had failed from a fishing guidance ship floating on the sea, not from North Korea.
(Photo = Yonhap News)