View of Korea Aerospace Industries Headquarters in Sacheon (Photo = KAI)

 

 

[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] All five Indonesian engineers dispatched to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) have been cleared of criminal charges related to the alleged leakage of data on the development of the KF-21, South Korea’s next-generation fighter jet.



According to a government official on June 3, the prosecution concluded the case late last month, issuing no-charge decisions for violations of the Defense Technology Security Act, the Defense Acquisition Program Act, and the Foreign Trade Act. For alleged violations of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, prosecution was suspended, effectively ending the investigation.



Authorities determined that the data the engineers attempted to export on USB drives did not contain classified or critical information, which led to the decision not to pursue criminal penalties.



The five engineers, who were working at KAI’s headquarters in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, were caught on January 17, 2023, attempting to remove USB drives containing multiple KF-21 development documents. With the latest prosecutorial decision, the investigation — which has lasted nearly a year and a half — has now come to a close.



Indonesia is a co-developer of the KF-21 program under an agreement signed in 2016. In August 2023, the South Korean government revised Indonesia’s financial share in the project from KRW 1.6 trillion to KRW 600 billion due to Jakarta's fiscal challenges and also scaled down the level of technology transfer. Seoul subsequently requested a revision to the original development agreement.



However, the Indonesian government had expressed strong dissatisfaction over the criminal investigation into its engineers, delaying discussions on the proposed amendments.

 

 

 

AlphaBIZ Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)