On the 11th, the Supreme Court confirmed a lower court decision that put on hold the imposition of a penalty against Lee Kyu-won, head of the Wonju branch of the Rebuilding Korea Party, who was accused of falsifying documents during an inquiry concerning claims of improper benefits at a villa linked to ex-Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui. The suspension of enforcement refers to a process wherein, should the defendant admit guilt for relatively light offenses, their sentence is delayed and automatically dropped after two years, thereby terminating legal proceedings.
The Third Division of the Supreme Court (led by Judge Lee Sook-yeon) confirmed the lower court's ruling to delay the announcement of a 2 million South Korean won penalty, rejecting Lee's appeal. Lee worked as part of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's Historical Truth Investigation Unit between November 2018 and May 2019. He faced prosecution for reportedly falsifying interviews with significant individuals involved in claims about sexual favoritism, such as construction entrepreneur Yoon Jung-cheon and ex-Chungnam Palace official Park Gwan-cheon, by adding quotes that were never actually said.
The initial court ruling admitted responsibility for one offense — fabricating official records by recreating the third meeting with Yoon in the absence of a recorded conversation — but cleared him of charges related to disclosing classified information, breaching the Personal Information Protection Act, obstructing operations, slander under the Information and Communications Network Act, and violating the Criminal Electronic Procedures Act. The judgment postponed announcing a penalty of 500,000 South Korean won.
The second trial reversed the previous not-guilty verdicts related to violations of the Personal Information Protection Act and the Criminal Electronic Procedures Act, increasing the suspended penalty to 2 million South Korean won. It determined that Lee was responsible for disclosing personal details gathered during interviews and improperly distributing data from the Korea Information System of Criminal Justice Services (KICS). The court noted, "Although the unlawful actions can’t be excused, the seriousness of the offense and damage to legal rights were limited, and the defendant acknowledged the main points."
The Supreme Court supported this decision and rejected Lee's appeal. Following the appellate verdict, the prosecution withdrew its appeal, yet Lee remained determined, stating, "Even the suspended fine of two million South Korean won needs to be addressed, so I will strive to convince the Supreme Court."
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