Room 39

For the Royal Navy intelligence organization, see Room 39 (Royal Navy).

39°01′00″N 125°44′28″E / 39.016758°N 125.740979°E / 39.016758; 125.740979

Room 39
Agency overview
Formed1972
HeadquartersPyongyang, North Korea
Parent agencyThird Floor Secretariat
Room 39
Chosŏn'gŭl
Hancha
Revised RomanizationSamsipgu-hosil
McCune–ReischauerSamsipku-hosil
Central Committee Bureau 39 of the Workers' Party of Korea
Chosŏn'gŭl
조선로동당 중앙위원회 39호실
Hancha
朝鮮勞動黨39號室
Revised RomanizationJoseon Rodongdang Jungang Wiwonhoe Samsipgu-hosil
McCune–ReischauerChosŏn Rodongdang Chungang Wiwŏnhoe Samsipku-hosil

Room 39 (officially Central Committee Bureau 39 of the Workers' Party of Korea,[1] also referred to as Bureau 39, Division 39, or Office 39[2]) is a secretive North Korean party organization that seeks ways to maintain the foreign currency slush fund for the country's leaders.[3]

The organization is estimated to bring in between $500 million and $1 billion per year or more[4] and is involved in illegal activities, such as counterfeiting $100 bills, producing controlled substances (including the synthesis of methamphetamine and the conversion of morphine into more potent opiates like heroin), and international insurance fraud.[3][5]

Room 39 is the largest of three influential so-called Third Floor offices along with Office 35 tasked with intelligence and Office 38 which handles legal financial activities.[6] Room 39 is believed to be located inside a ruling Workers' Party building in Pyongyang,[7] not far from one of the North Korean leader's residences.[2] All three Offices were initially housed on the third floor of the building where Kim Jong Il's office used to be, hence the moniker "Third Floor".[6]

  1. ^ Rosett, Claudia (15 April 2010). "Kim Jong Il's 'Cashbox'". Forbes. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b Landler, Mark (30 August 2010). "New U.S. Sanctions Aim at North Korean Elite". The New York Times.
  3. ^ a b David Rose (5 August 2009). "North Korea's Dollar Store". Vanity Fair.
  4. ^ Rose, David (September 2009). "North Korea's Dollar Store". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  5. ^ "Global Insurance Fraud By North Korea Outlined". Washington Post. 18 June 2009.
  6. ^ a b Fischer 2016, p. 178.
  7. ^ Kelly Olsen (11 June 2009). "New sanctions could hit North Korea's fundraising". The Guardian.