Cho Kuk "I Can't Say Anything"... 35 Guilty Verdicts Out of 43 Charges Against Family

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, who was indicted on charges including the cover-up of the inspection of Yoo Jae-su, former Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs of Busan, and his children's admission fraud, arrived at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 28th and is moving to the courtroom. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk said, "I cannot say anything," as he appeared in court on the 27th. The previous day, his younger brother Cho Kwon was sentenced guilty in the appellate court, and his spouse, Professor Jeong Gyeong-sim of Dongyang University, and daughter Cho Min were respectively dismissed and had their admission canceled by their school. Cho's silence that day was interpreted as encapsulating the series of atmospheres surrounding his family.

Younger Brother Also Detained in Court... Substantive Trial Concludes

The day before, the Criminal Division 3 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Park Yeon-wook) sentenced Cho Kwon to three years in prison and detained him in court. The judgment differed significantly from the first trial. Four out of seven charges against Cho Kwon were found guilty. In the first trial last September, only one charge was recognized as guilty.

With the appellate court's decision on Cho Kwon, the substantive trials of the Cho family, including the first and second trials, have all concluded. In January, the Seoul High Court sentenced Cho Beom-dong, Cho's fifth cousin, to four years in prison, and on the 11th, Professor Jeong was sentenced to four years. Among them, the Supreme Court ruling on Cho Beom-dong, the legal review, was also issued last June. The Supreme Court's Third Division (Presiding Justice No Jeong-hee) confirmed the guilty verdict.

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's younger brother, Cho Kwon [Image source=Yonhap News]

35 out of 43 Charges Against Family Found Guilty

The investigation into the Cho family was triggered in August 2019. The Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (then Chief Prosecutor Ko Hyung-gon) launched a simultaneous raid on more than 20 locations nationwide as a signal flare. Cho Beom-dong, Professor Jeong, and Cho Kwon were successively arrested and indicted. The number of charges applied to them through additional indictments by the prosecution reached 43.

The prosecution's investigation was broadly divided into three branches: ▲ admission fraud ▲ illegal investment in private equity funds ▲ allegations of corruption at Ungdong Academy. Cho Beom-dong faced 21 charges related to illegal private equity fund investments, Professor Jeong faced 15 charges including admission fraud and private equity funds, and Cho Kwon faced seven charges related to Ungdong Academy. The prosecution secured guilty verdicts on as many as 35 charges from the court. Twenty charges against Cho Beom-dong and eleven charges against Professor Jeong were ruled guilty.

Cho Kuk's Trial Ongoing... Jeong Gyeong-sim Sitting Beside

The only remaining member of the family is former Minister Cho Kuk himself. Cho is undergoing a first trial for charges including his children's admission fraud and bribery. The case involving allegations of suppressing the investigation into Yoo Jae-soo, investigated by the Criminal Division 3 of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office (then Chief Prosecutor Lee Jeong-seop), has also been consolidated and is under trial. The presiding court, the Criminal Division 21-1 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Ma Seong-young), conducted witness questioning of Cho's son, Cho Won, who is a homeroom teacher of the study abroad class at Han Young Foreign Language High School. During the questioning, Cho Kuk examined the materials presented by the prosecution together with Professor Jeong, who was seated beside him.