Defense Team: "Received as a gift due to personal friendships with company officials"
Prosecution: "Will investigate additional bribers to decide on indictment"
[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] Yoo Jae-su (56), former Deputy Mayor of Busan City for Economic Affairs, who is accused of accepting bribes and providing favors to financial companies during his tenure at the Financial Services Commission, denied the charges in court, admitting to receiving money and goods but claiming there was no quid pro quo or connection to his official duties.
The Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Eastern District Court (Presiding Judge Son Joo-chul) held the second pretrial hearing on the 20th for Yoo, who was indicted on charges of bribery, breach of trust after bribery, and violation of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, listening to opinions from the prosecution and defense counsel.
Yoo’s defense team stated, "Overall, we deny the bribery charges," acknowledging that he received money and goods from company representatives but argued there was no quid pro quo. They claimed that the exchange of money and goods was merely a gift based on private friendships between Yoo and the donors.
They also argued that "the specific duties Yoo handled at the Financial Services Commission, as well as the claim that he held 'immense influence' in his role at the FSC, are excessively vague," and thus denied any connection to his official duties.
During the prosecution’s investigation, it was revealed that Yoo asked Choi, the eldest son of a mid-sized construction company chairman and head of an asset management firm, to place his younger brother Yoo Mo in a previously nonexistent position. The prosecution views this as a quid pro quo, asserting that Yoo helped Choi’s company receive a commendation from the Financial Services Commission chairman, which had the effect of mitigating sanctions from financial institutions.
The defense countered that there was no concrete connection to Yoo’s official duties, stating that the commendation was recommended internally by the FSC after requesting additional candidates, and that Yoo did not actively engage in any fraudulent activities during the evaluation process.
The defense also argued that Yoo borrowing 250 million KRW interest-free from Yoon, the president of a credit information company, and having 10 million KRW of that debt forgiven in 2011 is beyond the statute of limitations (7 years).
The prosecution responded to the defense’s statute of limitations claim by stating, "This matter was thoroughly reviewed during the investigation phase," and explained that Yoon’s bribery was treated as a continuous offense (where multiple acts are collectively considered a single crime).
Although 7 years have passed since the apartment payment transaction in 2011, Yoon continued to provide money and goods under various pretexts such as book payments, pocket money for Yoo’s son, and gifts for employees, which the prosecution considers part of the same bribery scheme.
The defense also claimed that the prosecution abused its prosecutorial discretion by pressuring financial company representatives who gave money and goods to Yoo, without informing them whether or when they would be indicted.
The prosecution stated regarding evidence such as the car Yoo used while staying in the United States, "We have requested criminal judicial cooperation from the U.S. Department of Justice," and added, "Once we receive a response from the U.S. DOJ, we will conduct additional investigations not only on Yoo but also on the donors, and decide on indictment based on that."
Yoo was arrested and indicted last December on charges of receiving money and benefits worth approximately 49.5 million KRW from four financial company representatives and committing corrupt acts during the period around his tenure at the FSC from 2010 to 2018. Yoo did not appear in court on this day.
The prosecution plans to call nine witnesses, including company officials who provided bribes.
After completing the pretrial procedures, the court scheduled the first trial for February 3.
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