Military prosecution on Tuesday arrested a Navy rear admiral on charges of embezzling public funds, marking the latest in a string of potential corruption cases that have tarnished the Navy’s standing, the Defense Ministry said.

The rear admiral, surnamed Kim, rose to fame for leading the Cheonghae Unit during its operation in late 2012 to rescue the sailors of the MT Gemini, a tanker owned by a Singaporean shipping company that had been taken captive by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden.

He reportedly faces accusations of overestimating food expenses to purchase liquor and pocketing some fuel outlays.

Kim’s apprehension followed a raid at his office at the Navy headquarters in Gyeryong, South Chungcheong Province.

“The military prosecutors are carrying out an investigation after arresting him in the afternoon on charges of embezzling food costs and other public money while serving in the Cheonghae Unit,” the ministry said in a statement.

In recent months, the Navy has been reeling from a series of graft scandals involving former and incumbent senior officials, triggering public criticism and calls for sweeping reform amid North Korea’s continued maritime threats.

A pangovernmental panel in March indicted a retired rear admiral and a retired commander on charges of manipulating documents regarding the evaluation of a substandard part of a naval salvage ship, named Tongyeong, to help a foreign defense contractor win a procurement deal.

Former Chief of Naval Operations Hwang Ki-chul, who served from 2013-15, was also arrested that month on charges of peddling influence to allow the firm to secure a contract to supply a part of the same vessel.

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)