'Forgery of Evidence Teacher Charge' MergePlus Kwon Bogun's First Trial Postponed

The trial was postponed as Kwon Bo-gun (35), Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of Merge Plus, who is accused of instructing evidence forgery, withheld his decision on whether to admit the charges. Mr. A, who stood trial alongside him on perjury charges, admitted to all charges, and the prosecution sought a one-year prison sentence for Mr. A.

At around 10:30 a.m. on the 14th, Judge Kim Jeong-gi of the Seoul Southern District Court Criminal Division 7 held the first trial for Kwon, who is accused of instructing evidence forgery, and his acquaintance Mr. A (57), who is charged with perjury. Kwon’s side stated that he had been unable to attend the hearing because he was focusing on an ongoing appeal trial at the Seoul High Court related to fraud charges, and thus withheld his opinion on admitting the charges. Consequently, the trial for Kwon was postponed to the next session.

Accordingly, Mr. A’s case, who admitted all charges, was separated, and the evidence examination and closing arguments for Mr. A proceeded on the same day. The prosecution requested a one-year prison sentence for Mr. A, stating that he "forged evidence and committed perjury in Kwon’s case." Mr. A’s defense said, "He admits his wrongdoing and regrets committing acts unbecoming of a church pastor," and asked the court to consider that the crimes were committed with the intention of protecting church members. Mr. A also apologized, saying, "I am sorry," and pledged, "I will reflect on myself and strive to follow the path of a righteous pastor."

Kwon is accused of embezzling over 600 million won of funds from the Merge Point operating company for Mr. A’s child’s overseas study expenses and of having a false IOU created to make it appear as a loan relationship. Mr. A is accused of perjury for testifying in favor of Kwon during Kwon’s fraud trial last year by claiming that the IOU was created before the investigation began.

The next trial for Kwon is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on May 2.

Previously, Kwon was sentenced to eight years in prison in the first trial on charges including fraud. Kwon, along with Nam-hee Kwon, CEO of Merge Plus, who was sentenced to four years in prison, appealed the verdict. They were prosecuted for selling Merge Money worth 252.1 billion won to 570,000 consumers despite the company facing a business suspension crisis due to accumulated deficits from May 2020 to August 2021. The prosecution also appealed, citing inappropriate sentencing.