Yoon Seeks Former NIS Official as Witness to Argue Martial Law Was Declared to Inspect Election Commission Servers

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s legal team brought back a former National Intelligence Service official who testified during Yoon’s impeachment proceedings, hoping to support its claim that emergency martial law was declared to inspect the National Election Commission’s security servers.

The Seoul High Court’s Criminal Division 12-1 called Baek Jong-wook, a former third deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, to testify on two hearing dates. The trial had resumed after a Supreme Court rejection of Yoon’s request to disqualify the panel, following a suspension of more than a month.

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It is not right to discuss the effects on the election commission’s system based on assumptions.

Baek took part in a 2023 security inspection of the election commission and testified about vulnerabilities during Yoon’s impeachment trial. But he did not confirm claims related to election fraud. The same boundary appeared in the insurrection case. When Yoon’s lawyer suggested that election results could technically have been manipulated because a company using Chinese telecommunications equipment handled early voting, Baek said, “It is not right to discuss the effects on the election commission’s system based on assumptions.”

Baek also declined to say whether an intrusion into the commission’s internal network had actually occurred. “I do not want to comment on election fraud,” he said. “What matters is whether election fraud went beyond possibility and led to an actual act. We did not see that, so I cannot answer.” A special counsel prosecutor warned against overinterpreting the inspection results. Baek agreed, saying the inspection only indicated that improvements to the system were needed.

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I do not want to comment on election fraud. What matters is whether election fraud went beyond possibility and led to an actual act. We did not see that, so I cannot answer.

Yoon’s lawyers tried to connect those vulnerabilities to the justification for martial law, arguing that Yoon had ordered a security check under the Martial Law Act. Baek resisted the effort, saying, “How could I understand the president’s intentions?” When Yoon questioned him directly and compared possible hacking of an admissions system with claims of admissions fraud, Baek said the period between the inspection and the martial-law declaration made it risky to draw conclusions from the initial findings.

The defense, which has previously argued that broadcasting the trial would violate Yoon’s right to defend himself, actively sought live coverage when Baek appeared. The presiding judge rejected the request, citing detailed questions about confidential matters. A spectator believed to support Yoon disrupted the hearing by demanding to know why that section was not being broadcast and was ordered out of the courtroom.

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How could I understand the president’s intentions?