PROSECUTORS DROP CHARGES AGAINST CHOO’S SON

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Prosecutors have announced the results of a probe into Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae's son, who allegedly received special favors during his mandatory military service. The investigation has concluded that there was no pressure from senior officials regarding his two leaves of absence, and that his failure to return to the unit cannot be viewed as desertion from military service. All the involved figures have been cleared of the charges.

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The leaves of absence for which the justice minister's son, surnamed Seo, allegedly received favors during his military service were two sick leaves and one regular leave of absence. Prosecutors have confirmed that the sick leaves were based on a medical diagnosis and that Seo did in fact receive surgery and medical treatment. A four-day leave of absence that he took after two sick leaves was approved verbally by his commander three days in advance. Prosecutors concluded that because a verbal approval is also legitimate, Seo did not commit anything that would constitute desertion from military service. However, they found that a phone conversation between Choo's son and a serviceman on duty, which the minister denied, did actually take place. The investigators believe it happened because the serviceman on duty had not been notified of the approval of Seo's leave of absence. Prosecutors concluded that Choo did not violate the anti-graft law, as she did not use pressure or ask for favors to extend a leave of absence for her son. They said Choo's aide contacted the military three times to receive information on the procedure for leave extension. The investigators have disclosed social media messages exchanged between the justice minister and her aide. The content of the messages was confirmed through a digital forensic analysis. It shows that Choo only asked her aide to check on her son without asking her aide to have her son's leave extended -- a fact she already testified about earlier. Although the prosecution failed to obtain phone records between Seo's parents and the military because the preservation period had already expired, a comprehensive analysis into the allegation has revealed that the claim lacks credibility. The prosecutors have decided not to indict the justice minister, her son, her aide and the involved military commander, and transferred the relevant military support officials to the military investigators. Choo issued a statement apologizing to the public for the disturbance and pledged to complete prosecutorial reforms.