Shincheonji Chairman Lee Man-hee Acquitted Again in 2nd Trial on 'Quarantine Obstruction' Charges... Convicted of Embezzlement

2nd Trial "3 Years Imprisonment with 5 Years Probation"

Lee Man-hee, President of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji)
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Lee Man-hee, the 90-year-old Chairman of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), who was indicted for obstructing COVID-19 quarantine measures, was acquitted again in the second trial. However, some charges including embezzlement and obstruction of business were partially upheld, resulting in a suspended prison sentence with a slightly increased term compared to the first trial.

On the 30th, the Criminal Division 3 of Suwon High Court (Chief Judge Kim Seongsu) ruled, "It is difficult to conclude that the omission of the list of believers and facility status was intentional," and acquitted Chairman Lee of violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, as in the first trial.

Nevertheless, the court found some charges such as embezzlement and obstruction of business to be guilty and sentenced him to 3 years in prison with a 5-year suspension. In the first trial, he was sentenced to 3 years in prison with a 4-year suspension.

Chairman Lee was tried on charges of colluding with executives to underreport the list of believers and meeting locations to quarantine authorities when COVID-19 spread centered around Shincheonji in February last year. He was also indicted for embezzling about 5 billion won of church funds during the construction of the Peace Palace, Shincheonji’s training center, totaling 5.6 billion won, and for holding religious events in public facilities of local governments without approval from 2015 to 2019.