It was discovered on the 11th that the police had searched and seized the National Intelligence Service twice this year to investigate 'suspicions of illegal support to the National Security Agency's budget.'
According to the facts confirmed by Rep. Yoon Geon-young of the Democratic Party of Korea with the National Intelligence Service and the police, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's anti-corruption investigation unit executed search and seizure warrants against the National Intelligence Service in January and last month of this year.
The reason the police sent investigators to secure documents and PC data was to confirm suspicions that the National Intelligence Service illegally sent a portion of its budget to the National Security Office for 2022 during the Yoon Seok-yeol administration.
The police reportedly investigated 20 current and former employees in connection with this suspicion, including those who were high-ranking executives of the National Intelligence Service at the time.
This investigation began in October last year when Park Seon-won, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, filed a complaint requesting that the National Intelligence Service, which involved the National Security Office, be punished for allegedly violating the National Finance Act.
Article 47 of the National Finance Act stipulates that each central government agency shall not share the budget with other state agencies.
According to the congressman's office, the National Intelligence Service established a 'Korea Influence Business Plan' in July of that year and reported it to the National Security Office, and executed a total of about 170 million won over 50 occasions by June of the following year.
Regarding the project, the National Intelligence Service has established principles such as no cash delivery, execution only when accompanied by NIS employees, and execution only when collaborating with other agencies or the private sector, but when looking at the details, arbitrary support is suspected, said Representative Yoon Geon-young.
Among the 50 cases, only 8 cases actually met with foreigners for the purpose of the project, and 38 cases were carried out under the pretext of contacting and consulting with domestic people.
Representative Yoon pointed out that the main content was support for meals for journalists, businessmen, former high-ranking public officials, professors, and former First Deputy Director of the National Security Office Kim Tae-hyo, including the cost of the National Security Office's own lunch box meetings.
Representative Yoon said in a post on Facebook, "This behavior is clearly illegal," and "The President's Office and the National Security Office clearly have their own budgets, but former First Deputy Director Kim Tae-hyo twisted the NIS's wrist and used NIS money as his own personal credit card."
The police also searched and seized the National Intelligence Service in January on suspicion of attempting to influence the 2023 Gangseo-gu mayor by-election in Seoul.
At the time, the results of a security check that 'vote results could be hacked' were announced just before the election. The main point of suspicion is that high-ranking officials of the National Intelligence Service were involved in deciding the timing of this announcement and that the content was also mixed with falsehood.
The investigation into this suspicion also began when Rep. Park Seon-won filed a complaint with the police based on a tip.
