Ex-defense intelligence chief acquitted of leaking military secrets

Moon Sang-ho, the former chief of the Defense Intelligence Command, was acquitted Friday in a first-instance ruling on charges that he leaked classified military mission details — including orders from then-Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun — to No Sang-won, a civilian and former intelligence commander, in the lead-up to the Dec. 3, 2024, emergency martial law declaration.

The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 26, presided over by Judge Lee Hyeon-gyeong, handed down the not-guilty verdict at 2 p.m. Friday.

The court found that the statements in question concerned the organizational structure of the Defense Intelligence Command — information already known outside the military — and equipment held or operated by other military units or civilian entities. As such, the court said, it was difficult to conclude that disclosing those statements could produce harmful results for military purposes.

The court also found that while No appeared to have had some prior knowledge of the missions as a former intelligence commander, there was no evidence he had been involved in the mission planning that Moon had reported to the defense minister. The statements alone, the court added, could not be considered to have provided No with information beyond what he already knew.

Moon's apparent concern at the time, the court said, was what steps to take regarding the troop preparations and deployment that No had mentioned. The conversation had also moved away from the "key issues briefing" for the defense minister almost immediately after an opening exchange of greetings. Given those circumstances, the court found insufficient evidence to conclude that Moon had acted with intent to leak military secrets.

However, the court rejected Moon's argument that the seizure of a dashcam SD card containing a recording of the call, along with related electronic data, had been unlawful. It also dismissed his claim that items seized in connection with No's case could not be used as evidence.

"The seizure procedure cannot be deemed unlawful," the court said, adding that how a court or investigative agency uses items it has lawfully seized has no bearing on the warrant requirement principle.

Moon was indicted on charges stemming from events on the morning of Dec. 2, 2024 — the day before the emergency martial law declaration — when he briefed then-Minister Kim on key pending issues and received instructions to "prepare well as reported" for one classified military mission. That afternoon, Moon allegedly called No, a civilian, and told him he had just briefed the defense minister and that he had been told to "prepare well" for the mission.

The insurrection special prosecutor's office, led by Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-seok, had asked the court at a closing argument hearing in July to sentence Moon to five years in prison.

Separately, Moon faces trial on insurrection charges for his alleged role in the martial law attempt. He is among several former commanders charged with performing key duties in furtherance of insurrection, including former Defense Counterintelligence Command chief Yeo In-hyeong, former Capital Defense Command chief Lee Jin-woo, former Army Chief of Staff Park An-su, who served as martial law commander, and former Army Special Warfare Command chief Kwak Jong-geun.

At the closing argument hearing on those insurrection charges in July, the special prosecutor sought 20 years in prison for Moon, 30 years each for Yeo and Lee, 25 years for Park, and 20 years for Kwak. Criminal Division 26 of the Seoul Central District Court is scheduled to deliver its verdict in that case on Sept. 21.

Moon had previously been convicted in a separate first-instance ruling in June and sentenced to two years in prison on charges of leaking the personal details of intelligence operatives to No for deployment in an investigation into alleged election fraud following the martial law declaration, in violation of military secrecy and personal data protection laws. Co-defendants Kim Bong-gyu, a former colonel who headed the Central Press Corps, and Jeong Seong-uk, a former colonel who commanded the 100th Brigade's 2nd Project Group, received sentences of one year and six months and one year, respectively.