Police bumbling details of alleged North Korean spies

Posted on : 2012-06-14 15:00 KST Modified on : 2012-06-14 15:00 KST
Suspected North Korea collaborators say they were only doing business

By Jung Hwan-bong, staff reporter
Factual inconsistencies have come up in a police investigation into alleged sharing of classified military information. The case concerns Kim, 56, an ethnic Korean from New Zealand who is suspected of being a North Korean agent. Kim is alleged to have relied on contacts in South Korea for classified military information.
Jeong, 62, is suspected of gathering military secrets following a request from Kim. Jeong said, “I was asked to gather some information on last May.” Police have alleged that Jeong met a North Korean agent in July, two months later.
“I know Kim, an ethnic Korean New Zealander, through business. I got a phone call from Kim last May for the first time in about ten years, and I met him,” Jeong told the Hankyoreh. “I‘ve not seen him since then.”
This contradicts the earlier police announcement that Lee, another suspected spy, and Kim got an order from a North Korean Agent in Dandong last July to collect some military secrets including NSI 4.0.
“Kim asked me about trading, not about military secrets,” said Jeong. “He visited South Korea from New Zealand and wanted to know what kinds of business opportunities were available.”
Police allege that Jeong shared information about NSI 4.0, an experimental rocket antenna used in communication. Any information related to NSI 4.0 is considered by police to be a serious military secret.
“I’m not involved in this case at all. I don‘t even know what Kim did. I just don’t understand why Kim wants to involve me in this case,” said Jeong, feeling mortified.
Police have announced that Jeong is suspected of gathering and sharing military secrets, though he hasn‘t been arrested or had his identity publicly revealed.
“Jeong might have met Kim last May,” said an officer of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. “But we found some evidence that Kim contacted Jeong via e-mail seeking information last July. Jeong replied with information last August.”
 
Translated by Kim Ji-seung, Hankyoreh English intern
 
Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
 

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