Warrants sought for military officers over salvage ship project

Arrest warrants have been sought for two military officers on charges of taking bribes from a local company that supplied faulty parts to a Navy rescue and salvage ship, a pan-governmental investigation team said Sunday.

The joint team of prosecutors, military officers and government officials said it has asked a military court to issue the arrest warrants for the two officials of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.

The two officers -- a Navy captain and a Navy commander identified only by their surnames Hwang and Choi -- are suspected of receiving 10 million (US$9,070) to 30 million in bribes from the supplier in 2011, according to the team.

"The company was found to have bribed the two officers several times in return for helping it proceed with the supply contract without a hitch," the team said.

In January 2011, the company won a 63 billion won contract to supply a sonar system to the nation's first indigenous salvage ship Tongyeong. 

The salvage vessel Tongyeong was completed in 2012 but was found to be fraught with problems at the peak of efforts to rescue those missing from the April 16 disaster in which a ferry capsized in southwestern waters and killed more than 300 passengers.

The military said Tongyeong's sonar system was insufficient and that its remotely operated vehicle was unable to properly scale underwater structures, prompting an investigation in May to find out why the 3,500-ton vessel could not be used when it was needed most.

Earlier, the joint investigation team detained a retired Navy captain on charges of receiving some 400 million won from the company in return for business favors.

Late last month, the government launched the joint investigation team amid growing allegations of bribery and other underhand dealings between military officials and defense firms, as well as cozy relations between the arms procurement agency and retired service personnel at private defense companies. (Yonhap)