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Ex-President Yoon built 'secret passage' to hide tardy office arrivals, photos suggest

Published: 17 Dec. 2025, 19:52

The eastern access road to the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, during the former President Yoon Suk Yeol's administration, at the start of construction, left, and after completion [REP. CHOO MI-AE'S OFFICE]

Photos released on Wednesday allegedly show that former President Yoon Suk Yeol built a "secret passage" to conceal the fact that he arrived at the office late during his term as president.

Rep. Choo Mi-ae of the Democratic Party (DP) revealed two images depicting construction at the eastern entrance of the presidential office complex in Yongsan, central Seoul, taken between July 27 and Nov. 23, 2022.

The project was carried out by Hyundai Engineering & Construction, and reportedly involved demolishing the external stairways of the presidential office building, excavating the site with heavy machinery and installing a concealed passage.

The controversy began in September this year, when testimony emerged suggesting the Presidential Security Service (PSS) and the presidential office had constructed the passage to conceal Yoon’s tardy arrivals.

A person familiar with the construction at the time said that the PSS leadership had asked the presidential administrative office to create a path that would “allow Yoon to enter discreetly” when arriving late. There was also internal testimony from the PSS indicating that the former president did, in fact, use the passage to arrive at work.

After taking office in May 2022, Yoon began commuting from his residence in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul, to the presidential office in Yongsan and was frequently criticized by the opposition for arriving late. Before the move to the presidential office in Yongsan, presidents lived in a residence within the Blue House, but after the move during the Yoon administration, he commuted from a private residence in Seocho-dong.

In November last year, Rep. Youn Kun-young, a DP member of the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, said he had received reports that the former president was late to work on about 10 occasions that month.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]