Two North Korean state security agents, Han Kwang Jin and Song Myong Nam, have been demoted and transferred after being recalled from Russia amid corruption allegations.
According to Daily NK sources in North Korea, Han was suddenly recalled to Pyongyang in mid-January while Song was recalled in late March. While officially described as “regular reviews,” the recalls were effectively arrests—both men returned without their luggage.
The North Korean authorities had received complaints about the two agents from North Korean workers in Russia and recalled them for intensive questioning. The pair were detained in isolated quarters within Ministry of State Security headquarters, where they underwent individual interrogations and wrote statements.
Based on workers’ complaints, the Ministry of State Security confronted the agents with four main corruption charges: financially extorting and verbally abusing workers, making private foreign currency remittances to support their families, colluding with Russian construction brokers and taking bribes, and threatening workers’ human rights while trying to identify who had complained against them.
During questioning, Song admitted to some allegations, but Han maintained he had performed his duties correctly. The Ministry of State Security internally labeled him a “typical dangerous individual” who “rationalizes” his behavior.
Both men were ultimately stripped of their credentials as “state security warriors.” Song was demoted and transferred to a rear area base as a private security officer, while Han was made a civilian and sent to the countryside. Both have been permanently excluded from overseas service, with the ministry’s internal network classifying them as “ineligible for overseas service” and “subjects for long-term indoctrination.”
Despite having solid backgrounds with connections to Central Committee officials, both received unusually severe punishments as authorities prioritized restoring the Ministry of State Security’s reputation.
Ministry responds to media exposure and worker complaints
“Unlike Choi Sung Chol, who was mentioned by name in enemy media, Han and Song were severely punished to make an example of them,” a source said. “It seems the ministry decided they needed to reestablish discipline to protect the organization’s dignity.”
A Daily NK exposé based on worker tips influenced the case. The ministry took the matter seriously and recalled and punished the pair to prevent another “Choi Sung Chol incident.”
“Within the Ministry of State Security, the dominant view is that having a case exposed in enemy media is a bigger problem,” the source said. “After enemy media reported on Choi Sung Chol, it’s clear the authorities dealt with the two agents to stop workers from tipping off the enemy press.”
Senior Ministry of State Security officials engaged in self-reflection, saying that state security agents “had created the opening that allowed enemy forces to influence workers.”
“Ministry officials say that security agents who should ideologically control the masses have given enemies space, and that the organization can’t be shamed again through media tips,” the source said.
The Ministry of State Security ordered state security agencies nationwide to “always respond to petitions and complaints” and to “rapidly report complaints and strengthen the response system.” They’ve included Han and Song’s case in lecture materials for officials sent overseas as a cautionary tale, stating that security agents overseas are “not oppressors of workers, but revolutionary protectors ideologically guarding them.”
The ministry also adjusted standards for selecting workers for overseas assignments. The standard for banning re-deployment of agents caught in corruption overseas, adopted after the Choi Sung Chol incident, was spelled out in more detail, making “agents who had problems in their relations with workers” unfit for overseas service.
“For the first time, the ministry seems to understand that security agents overseas could trigger worker anger and defections,” the source said. “It’s highly significant that they now recognize the character of security officers could pose a real threat to the regime’s stability.”
