South Korea arrests official over alleged data leak exposing spies, reports

SEOUL — A South Korean court has issued an arrest warrant for an official at the country's military intelligence command for allegedly leaking classified data identifying agents working overseas, according to the defence ministry and media reports.

The defence ministry confirmed in a text message sent to reporters on Tuesday (July 30) that a military court had issued an arrest warrant for an official at the agency, though declined further comment as an investigation was ongoing.

Media reports said the suspect, who works at the Korea Defence Intelligence Command (KDIC), was accused of leaking personal information on agents to a Chinese individual of Korean descent. The official was not identified and it was not immediately clear if they had been taken into custody.

The leaked data stored on computers at KDIC was transferred to the official's personal laptop, before it was leaked, the Yonhap news agency reported, without citing sources.

The information included a list of so-called "black agents", a term used in South Korea for non-official spies performing undercover espionage overseas, as opposed to "white agents" with official titles, Yonhap said.

The official had denied leaking and said that the laptop had been hacked, the news agency said. Yonhap said authorities were concerned the data might have been given to North Korea.

Lawmakers briefed by military intelligence officials said the leak was not a result of a hack and was first discovered in June.

"Overseas staff were immediately ordered to be recalled," lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun who sits on the intelligence committee told reporters on Tuesday.

Authorities were looking into potential violations of military criminal law as well as the National Security Act and treason,