Lee Man-hee, President of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji). / Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] Lee Man-hee (89), the chairman of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), who was arrested on charges of obstructing the quarantine activities against the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), filed a detention review but it was not accepted.
The Criminal Division 11 of Suwon District Court held a detention review on the 13th for Chairman Lee, who was arrested on charges of violating the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act and the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement), and dismissed the request.
The court explained the reason for dismissal, stating, "Based on the results of the hearing and the documents, considering the degree of evidence of the crime, the progress of the investigation, and health conditions comprehensively, there is no change in circumstances that would deem the issuance of the detention warrant inappropriate or the necessity of detention unrecognized, so the request is without grounds."
Chairman Lee was arrested on the 1st of this month on charges of conspiring with Shincheonji executives to underreport the list of believers and meeting locations to quarantine authorities when COVID-19 spread centered around Shincheonji in February this year.
He is also accused of embezzling 5.6 billion KRW, including using about 5 billion KRW of church funds during the construction of the Peace Palace, Shincheonji's training center, and holding religious events in public facilities of local governments without approval from 2015 to last year.
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