Critical Incidents: The ROK - Land of HAN (A Jack Gunn Mystery Thriller Book 1) (12 page)

Three days had passed since my meeting with Lee and I hadn’t heard back from him yet. I was sitting in my office, Friday afternoon, and my cell rang. Looking at the number, I knew it was Lee.

“Hello, KY.”

“Jack, I got good news. Colonel Han and Mr. Yoon will meet us tonight at 7 pm, at your room. I gave them your room number and told them to come right up for the meeting.”

“That’s great.”

“I had a hard time connecting with Han because he’s so busy. Both of them are very interested in the meeting because they know the NIS has made a power grab.”

“It’s too bad we don’t have any firm evidence yet,” I told him.

“Yes, it is. But we have their attention anyway. I have to get going now, so see you tonight.”

I printed out the pictures of the four suspected terrorists from my cell phone, so Colonel Han and Mr. Yoon could see who these guys were. I typed up a short report detailing each man along with what we had uncovered so far, which was not much. Actually, I felt rather stupid doing so. But on second thought, where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

I phoned Ted and told him about the meeting with Colonel Han and Mr. Yoon. Ted thought it was a great idea and wished me luck. He reminded me of the dinner date at his place tomorrow, and asked me to arrive by seven o’clock.

Leaving the office early, I took a taxi to the Tiger House to payoff Lady Lim. Mama-san was very pleased to receive the pay off and asked if there was anything else she could do for the government. Then Lady Lim asked, “Hey, Mr. Jack, when you marry Mi-young?”

Mi-young giggled and I replied, “Not for a while, Mama-san.” Right now that was the last thing I needed, since I already had one wife.

As I slipped two grand to Mi-young, she was surprised and thanked me. While there, I checked that the bugs were still in position and functioning properly. Satisfied that everything was fine, I kissed Mi-young on the cheek, said goodbye to Lady Lim, and returned to the Chosun Hotel for the important meeting.

I was ready for the meeting and had reviewed the information we’d collected so far. There was a knock on my door. It was Lee arriving ahead of time for the meeting. I quickly reviewed the information with him that was laid out on the table.

Han and Yoon arrived exactly on time. Lee introduced me as the new RSO at the U.S. Embassy. We exchanged name cards and showed our ID badges, to confirm our identities.

I immediately had a good impression of both men. Of course, when in Korea, business is done Korean style. That means a lot of preliminary talk, getting to know each other’s background and history. While doing that we had drinks and room service brought in hors d’oeuvres for us to munch on.

I usually judge people by my first impression. Normally I can spot a phony or liar in a few minutes. I have this sixth sense that tells if someone is up to no good. These men passed my sixth sense test.

Mr. Yoon was a neatly dressed older man with white-grey hair. He had a kind smile and mannerism about him. Colonel Han was a younger man in his late forties. He didn’t have on his Army uniform, which was normal, since he worked for the AIG (Army Intelligence Group). He took off his suit jacket and made it known he was packing. Han was more businesslike, and to the point than Mr. Yoon. He acted like most military people I know.         

Since we had all been in the military, we related quite well to Colonel Han, who was very blunt at times. Lee explained how we became friends when he was in the KATUSA Army on MP duty with me. Han and Yoon spoke perfect English, so there was no need to translate into Korean.

After small talk, we sat down at the table and they started to read my report and view the pictures. After about fifteen minutes, Colonel Han said, “Jack, this is a serious problem and we appreciate you bringing it to our attention.”

Mr. Yoon nodded in agreement. “Yes, it is appreciated very much. It is clear these men are communist terrorists, and one is a radical Muslim.”

I said, “So, do you think we can assume these men are somehow involved in terrorist activities here in Korea?”

“Absolutely. I think they’re involved in something and it might be related to the NIS power grab,” Yoon replied.

“That’s exactly what Lee and I thought.”    

Han added, “We knew about the NIS power grab from Yoon-shi when they forced him to retire. I was worried the NIS might try to assassinate him, so I provided him a bodyguard around the clock.”

Lee commented, “Look what happened to Mr. Kim, the old director. Someone killed him so he wouldn’t talk.”

“Ne (Yes), that’s what I think,” Yoon said.

Han replied, “I think we can all agree that his death was not because of a natural heart attack.”

Lee said, “Our problem is, we can’t find a connection between Kwon or Suk, to the four terrorists.”

Everyone was quiet for a minute. Mr. Yoon lit a smoke and offered me one, which I gladly accepted.

Yoon said, “We don’t need a connection right now, but later we will.”

Han said, “I agree with Yoon-shi.”

While peering at Han, Yoon continued, “If you arrest Kwon and Suk, while taking over the NIS, we will need some proof, or the media will fry the Army. It could cause major demonstrations.”

“Once we arrest Kwon and Suk they will talk. Everyone ends up talking. Believe me, they’ll squeal like pigs,” Han said, as he glanced at me to check my reaction.

I said, “Whatever it takes, I’m in favor of doing.”

Han asked me, “What about your boss, Ambassador Stevens? Does he know about this problem?”

“Unofficially, yes, he does. Officially, he doesn’t know anything. Of course, I don’t tell him everything because he doesn’t need to know. So I don’t fill him in on all the details. He just tells me to take care of it.”

“I understand,” Han commented. “What about you, Lee? Have you told anyone else?”

“No, of course not. The only people I can trust are right here,” Lee replied.  “No one has mentioned this, but there is a possibility that President Roh is behind the takeover of the NIS.”

Old man Yoon commented, “President Roh is not interested in power and does not like the NIS spying on people. I can’t believe that Roh would be involved in trying to take over the government. Why should he do that? He already controls it. I know him and he’s not that type of man. I think he’s being duped.”

Colonel Han said, “We will see what type of man he is when the Army takes over the NIS. If we find out that President Roh was somehow involved, then we’ll have to arrest him for treason.”        

I said, “There are two things we don’t know about these four terrorists. One is, what are they planning? Two is, when are they going to do it?”

Yoon commented, “Yes, those are good points, Jack. Time is very important, so we have to act soon. August 15
th
is Gwangbokjeol (Korean Independence Day).”

Yoon, Han, and Lee all looked at each other with grim faces. Han said, “It’s not my favorite holiday.” They all nodded in agreement.

“Why don’t you like Independence Day?” I asked.

“Because, if they have a plan to do something it will most likely be on that day,” Yoon said. “Don’t you know the history of Gwangbokjeol?”

“No, not really.”

Lee said, “Yes you do, but you don’t remember it.”

Yoon replied, “Critical Incident 8.15 is what we call it. Korean Independence Day or Liberation Day from Japan is celebrated on August 15
th
every year. President Park, along with his wife, Yuk Young-soo, were giving a speech at Seoul National Theater on that day.        

“During the ceremony a Korean man named Mun Se-gwang, a North Korean sympathizer who actually lived in Japan, attempted to assassinate President Park. As he moved through the crowd to get closer to the President, his gun accidently discharged, injuring himself. Of course, when his gun went off in the crowded room, it alerted security.”

Yoon paused, and took a drag off his smoke and then continued.

“He started running down the aisle, wildly shooting at President Park. His second bullet hit the podium where Park was standing. No one knows where the third bullet went. The fourth shot struck Park’s wife in the head. The last bullet he fired went into the stage. The President’s bodyguard, Jong-gyu Park, was returning fire and he accidently shot a high school student sitting in the room. Yuk Young-soo died from the gun shot later that day and so did the student.

“They captured Mun alive and he confessed that North Korean residents living in Japan aided him. Because he used a Japanese passport to enter Korea, this created diplomatic problems between Japan and Korea. It was discovered that Mun was working for the North Korea government, who ordered this assassination attempt.”

I said, “I never knew his wife was killed.”

“Yes, it was very sad.” replied Han. “That was when the KCIA was in power, before the NIS was created. Security back then wasn’t very good.”

“Let me tell you some more information about President Park,” Yoon said. “In 1968, thirty-one North Korean commandos infiltrated across the DMZ. Their mission was to assassinate President Park. They might have succeeded if it wasn’t for some farmers who saw the commandos and reported them to the police. The commandos were able to move within five hundred meters of the Blue House before being confronted by police.

“They tried to escape, but the Korean and U.S. Army had thousands of troops searching for them. They were all killed except one man who was tortured and then hanged.”

I said, “I never heard about that incident.”

Colonel Han commented, “President Park was hated by many and loved by many. His history is very complex and he came to power by committing a coup. Some thought he was a communist, which he wasn’t. But he was greatly influenced by the Japanese Military when he was young. His thinking was that of a trained Japanese Officer because he was one. Many people don’t know that he was an officer in the Manchukuo Japanese Imperial Army and severed as an aide, so they say, to a regimental commander. At one time he even changed his name to a Japanese one, Okamoto Minoru. Many people believed he aided our enemy, the Japanese, for his own advantage.

“Park may have had the best interest of Korea in mind, but he controlled the country like the Japanese did. Park was a military man, and that’s what he knew how to do. He declared martial law many times. There were two or three more attempts on his life that were never reported.”

Han took a drink and lit a smoke that I offered him. “You know a lot of details about Park,” I commented. “I never knew he was in the Japanese Army.”

“All Korean Army Officers are required to study President Park at the Military Academy. It’s a classic power struggle between the people and the military. Park is an example of what not to do in most cases. But he did do many good things for Korea. Personally, I think he was the right man at the right time for our country, similar to your George Washington.”

“So what happened to Park? I know he was killed, but who did it?” I asked.

“Park was assassinated on August 15, 1979 at a party in the Blue House. What’s really strange, it was his good friend, Jae-gyu Kim, Director of the KCIA who killed him.”

“I never knew that,” I said.

“Kim was the one who helped Park start the coup to take over the government eighteen years before. They were very close friends. Anyway, Kim and his four supporters killed Park, and several others before being arrested by the Army. He confessed that he did it because Park was turning into a dictator. Of course, Kim was put to death after he suffered at the hands of the Army. President Park had led South Korea for eighteen years and made it prosper. That’s longer than any other person. End of story.”

I said, “August 15
th
is not far away. The same thing could happen again.”

“Yes, so we need to do something this coming week,” Yoon said. “I think the terrorists could strike any time between the 8
th
and the 15
th
.”

“Colonel Han, what do you suggest?” Lee asked.

Han didn’t reply right away and pulled out a small pocket calendar. Glancing at it, he said, “It will take me a few days to gain approval from General Choi and to have my troops ready to move in on the NIS Headquarters. I think by this Wednesday, the 3
rd
, we’ll be ready to make our move.”

“What should we do with the four guys we think are terrorists?” Lee asked.

Han glared at us. He replied, “We can’t trust the NIS or the police to arrest them. We can’t take any chances. We need them to disappear by this coming Wednesday. The Korean Army cannot be involved in any actions against foreigners, especially Americans, when there is no direct evidence.”

I said, “I assume you mean, disappear forever.”

“Yes. The sooner, the better. You and Lee will have to handle this. We need these men eliminated before we take over the NIS because they might still try to finish their mission, whatever that may be. They could disappear into the general population and we might never find them again.”