Adversary Intelligence — 2026-10-23

Former PLA Officer Intercepted Communications at US-South Korea Military Bases During Joint Exercises 13 Times

BLUFDocumented PLA collection against allied exercises gives Washington concrete grounds to further restrict intelligence sharing with Seoul until Korea closes its counterintelligence gaps.

The Korea JoongAng Daily reported, citing an indictment obtained from the Ministry of Justice by People Power Party Rep. Kim Meen-geon, that a former PLA lieutenant colonel with 40 years in a signals-intelligence unit intercepted communications at Korean and US bases 13 times between March 2024 and August 2026, seven during bilateral or trilateral exercises 1. The Korea Times, citing the Pyeongtaek branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors Office, said he allegedly smuggled 13.9 terabytes of intercepted data to China 2. Kunsan Air Base was targeted in seven operations, and prosecutors indicted him on September 1 1. The Herald Business reported that police arrested him as "B" on general treason and communications secrets charges, that he used a software-defined radio near Gunsan Airport, and that he told investigators listening to aircraft communications was "a hobby" 3. A second former PLA member, a 45-year-old special forces veteran, allegedly stole exercise data 12 times and recruited a civilian worker and soldiers at Camp Humphreys 23. Korea Daily gives the end date as August 2028 and the age as 64, which conflicts with the other outlets 4.

Analysis
Seoul's counterintelligence gap is now an alliance problem rather than a policing one. A retired PLA signals officer collected near Kunsan, Camp Humphreys, Busan and Gwangju, and a second ex-PLA member allegedly recruited insiders at Camp Humphreys. Collection timed against Freedom Shield, Freedom Flag, Freedom Edge and Ulchi Freedom Shield points to deliberate targeting of allied exercises, which undercuts the suspect's "hobby" explanation, though opportunistic radio monitoring drawn by heavy air activity remains possible. Washington has already restricted some North Korea intelligence shared with Seoul, and these cases give US officials grounds to extend that. Prosecutors used older provisions because the revised espionage law took effect only September 13, leaving it untested. Confidence is high: four outlets report the core facts consistently from a prosecutors' indictment, though they share that single source, and one outlet's age and end-date discrepancies appear to be errors.

4 sources

Alleged Chinese spy snooping on drills with US puts fresh pressure on Korea counterintelligence system - Korea JoongAng Daily
2 former Chinese soldiers indicted for leaking secrets from Korean, US military - The Korea Times
Two ex-PLA soldiers arrested for spying near US military bases in South Korea - The Herald Business
US-South Korea military intelligence — China Spies Target Allied Drills - Korea Daily