The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office's 3rd Public Investigation Division (Prosecutor Lee Jun-beom), who is investigating the 'forcible repatriation of North Korean fishermen to North Korea', summoned former President Roh Young-min as the accused on the morning of the 19th.



Initially, the prosecution notified former chief of staff Roh to attend on the 16th, but the date of the investigation was rescheduled as the schedule was announced to the media.



Prosecutors are confirming allegations of Roh's involvement in forcibly returning two North Korean fishermen who are believed to have killed 16 fellow sailors in November 2019.



Roh, who presided over the Blue House countermeasure meeting on November 4, 2019, when the policy of repatriation to North Korea is known to have been decided, was accused of abuse of power, illegal arrest and confinement, and neglect of duties. I was charged in August.



The ship carrying fishermen was captured by the Korean Navy on November 2, 2019.



It is said that the National Intelligence Service delivered a report to the National Security Office on the same day that two fishermen expressed their intention to defect.



It was created based on a handwritten application for protection that clearly expressed the intention to defect.



However, with the countermeasure meeting presided over by former Chief of Staff Roh, the current of the government has changed.



After this meeting, after deciding on the policy of forced repatriation, I instructed the National Intelligence Service to 'deliver the joint investigation report to the Ministry of Unification'.



The current government's conclusion is that the NIS command deleted the 'expression of intention to defect and the suggestion of a forced investigation' from the joint investigation report, and instead wrote a 'conclusion of no suspicion of anti-aircraft charges' and sent it to the Ministry of Unification.



In addition, the Joint Investigation Team instructed to change the title of the item containing the 'North Korean defector handwritten protection application' from 'Defector Confirmation Data' to 'Defector Confirmation Data' in the 'Joint Investigation Result Report' prepared at the site of the military complaint in Daebang-dong, Seoul. It was delivered to the National Security Office on November 6th.



Eventually, the next day, two fishermen were repatriated to North Korea through Panmunjom.



Prosecutors plan to check to what extent former Director Roh was involved in this series of decision-making processes and whether there were specific instructions from 'superior'.



After Roh's investigation, former Blue House National Security Office Director Chung Eui-yong and former National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon are also expected to be summoned.



(Photo = provided by Noh Young-min election camp, Yonhap News)