[News Terms] 'Doknip Molsuje' Highlighted by Jeon Du-hwan Grandson's Revelation

The 'independent confiscation system' is a system that allows the confiscation of criminal proceeds even in cases where trial proceedings are impossible due to the criminal's overseas escape or death, or in cases where a final guilty verdict has not been issued.

It is implemented in countries such as the United States, Germany, and Australia. Germany explicitly states in its Penal Code that confiscation is possible if the conditions for confiscation are met, even without prosecution or a guilty verdict, and detailed procedures for independent confiscation are also established in the Code of Criminal Procedure. The United States confiscates property suspected to be illegal or related to crime regardless of criminal punishment for the defendant through the 'civil forfeiture system.'

In South Korea, the need to introduce the independent confiscation system has been steadily raised to prevent recidivism, deprive criminals of their proceeds, and protect victims. However, legislation has not progressed due to concerns such as protection measures for third parties who unknowingly own the property in question and violations of the presumption of innocence.

The late former President Jeon Du-hwan.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The legal community believes that when reasons such as death occur, the court can determine the connection between the property and the crime upon the prosecutor's request, and for third parties or other stakeholders, confiscation should be decided through a separate review. They argue that the introduction of the independent confiscation system is necessary to return property to victims of crimes such as voice phishing or multi-level marketing fraud.

Recently, interest has grown over whether the unpaid fines of the late Jeon Du-hwan can be recovered, following his grandson Woo-won’s exposure of the family’s slush fund suspicions on social media. The fines imposed on Jeon amount to 220.5 billion won, with 86.7 billion won currently unpaid. In conclusion, additional confiscation is currently impossible.

In July last year, the Supreme Court upheld the seizure of the annex at Jeon’s residence in Yeonhui-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, but confirmed a ruling that additional confiscation enforcement is impossible since the party has died. Even if, as Woo-won revealed, the family knowingly created and used a 'black slush fund' as bribes, there is a statute of limitations issue. It is difficult to investigate crimes committed in the 1990s now.

Before Jeon’s death, in June 2020, Democratic Party lawmaker Yoo Ki-hong and others proposed the so-called 'Jeon Du-hwan Confiscation 3 Acts,' including the introduction of the independent confiscation system to allow confiscation of inherited property received by family members, but it has been pending in the National Assembly for three years.