Ahead of the April 2020 general election, Son Junsung, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Daegu High Prosecutors' Office, who was indicted on charges related to the so-called 'report solicitation' allegation?that the prosecution led by then Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol urged the opposition party to file complaints against ruling party politicians?was sentenced to one year in prison in the first trial.
The Criminal Division 27 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Ok-gon) recognized Son's guilt on charges of leaking official secrets and violating the Personal Information Protection Act during the sentencing hearing held on the morning of the 31st for charges including violation of the Public Official Election Act and leaking official secrets. Son was sentenced to one year in prison. The court did not order Son's detention in court.
The court stated, "It can be acknowledged that the defendant, as the Investigation Information Policy Officer of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, was involved in drafting and reviewing the complaint as well as generating and collecting investigative information that formed the basis of the complaint." It added, "Since the complaint named ruling party figures who were attacking the prosecution at the time as defendants, the defendant had a motive to ensure the complaint was filed."
However, the court judged that merely delivering the complaint was insufficient to influence the election and acquitted Son on the charge of violating the Public Official Election Act.
Son was indicted on charges including leaking official secrets by exchanging images of complaints and real-name verdicts concerning ruling party figures such as former Open Democratic Party proportional representative candidate Choi Kang-wook, former Supreme Council member Hwang Hee-seok, and then Roh Moo-hyun Foundation Chairman Yoo Si-min with Kim Woong, a candidate from the then United Future Party (predecessor of the People Power Party), via the Telegram messenger ahead of the April 2020 general election, while serving as the Investigation Information Policy Officer at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.
On September 2, 2021, Newsbus raised related suspicions through a series of reports starting with an exclusive article titled "[Exclusive] Yoon Seok-yeol's prosecution urges People Power Party to file complaints against Yoo Si-min, Choi Kang-wook, Hwang Hee-seok ahead of general election."
In another article published the same day titled "[Background Explanation] Attempt to neutralize the Prosecutor General met with Yoon Seok-yeol's prosecution urging the opposition party to file complaints," Newsbus pointed out that the complaint in question was filed on April 3, 2020, during a period of extreme conflict between then Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae and former Prosecutor General Yoon. It argued that after MBC's report on the 'media-prosecution collusion' allegation, as inspections of Yoon's faction and pressure on the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office investigation were anticipated, Yoon's prosecution appeared to have instructed the United Future Party to file complaints against ruling party figures as a countermeasure against Choo's side through another prosecution investigation.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) launched an investigation upon the emergence of related allegations and confirmed that the complaint and verdict documents were transmitted via Telegram messenger in the order of Son → Kim Woong → whistleblower Jo Sung-eun. After eight months of investigation, the CIO indicted Son.
The CIO judged that Son sent complaints and verdict documents regarding ruling party figures twice, on April 3 and 8, 2020, to Kim Woong to negatively influence the April 15, 2020 general election in which figures like Choi Kang-wook and Hwang Hee-seok ran as candidates, and that such acts violated the Public Official Election Act. Kim Woong, who forwarded the complaints and materials received from Son to the United Future Party, was charged with conspiracy to violate the Public Official Election Act alongside Son.
Additionally, the CIO considered Son's transmission of complaints containing investigative information related to criminal charges to Kim Woong as leaking official secrets. It also applied charges of violating the Personal Information Protection Act and the Electronic Criminal Procedure Act for instructing officials in the Investigation Information Policy Office to view and collect real-name verdicts concerning whistleblower Ji Mo related to the 'media-prosecution collusion' allegation and sending them to Kim Woong.
During the investigation, the CIO requested arrest warrants for Son twice, but both were dismissed on grounds such as "insufficient explanation of the reasons, necessity, and appropriateness of detention," leading to criticism of the CIO's excessive investigation.
The CIO also registered then Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, now President, and Han Dong-hoon, then Head of the Anti-Corruption and Serious Crimes Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, as suspects but ultimately cleared them of charges.
In the sentencing hearing held in November last year, the CIO requested the court to sentence Son to three years in prison for violating the Public Official Election Act under the separate sentencing provisions and two years in prison for other charges including leaking official secrets.
This case marks the first conviction among cases prosecuted by the CIO.
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