'Military Supply Bribery' Former Military Court Chief Lee Dong-ho Sentenced to 4 Years by Supreme Court

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] Lee Dong-ho, former Chief Judge of the High Military Court, who was prosecuted for receiving bribes in exchange for resolving complaints from military supply contractors, has had his prison sentence confirmed by the Supreme Court.

On the 15th, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Noh Jeong-hee) upheld the lower court's ruling sentencing Lee to 4 years in prison and a fine of 60 million won in the final appeal trial on charges of bribery under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes.

Lee was prosecuted on charges of receiving money and valuables from Jeong Mo, the CEO of a food processing company, and others from July 2015 to November 2019. When issues arose such as foreign substances being detected or substandard content in the food supplied by the company at that time, Lee was investigated for contacting military supply bidding officials at Jeong's request.

The first trial sentenced him to 4 years in prison and a fine of 60 million won. The court stated, "Despite holding a position that demands the highest level of integrity and morality, Lee received a large sum of money from executives and employees of the military supply company."

The second trial also upheld the first trial's verdict, stating, "Lee's crime damaged the fairness and integrity of the military judicial system," and "It left wounds on the honor and pride of the majority of military legal officers." Both the prosecution and Lee appealed, but the Supreme Court dismissed the appeals.