South Korean spy chief nominee had license suspended for drunk driving

Cho Tae-yong was nominated for the director of the South Korean spy service last month. (Yonhap)

Cho Tae-yong, who was nominated by President Yoon Suk Yeol as the National Intelligence Service director on Dec. 19, once had his driver’s license suspended for driving under the influence.

According to the police report The Korea Herald obtained exclusively through the National Assembly on Tuesday, Cho was caught drunk driving on Feb. 23, 1999, and received a license suspension. On Aug. 10 of the same year, the court sentenced him to a fine of 700,000 won ($536).

Until recently, Cho was national security advisor to the president. Before, he was Yoon's top ambassador to the US.