Lee Jae-myung, Representative, Absent Again from 'Daejang-dong Trial'... Court Considers "Forced Summons"

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, again did not attend the trial related to the Daejang-dong case on the 19th, citing election campaigning for the general election as the reason. Lee also missed the morning session of the previous trial on the 12th to attend the launch ceremony of the Democratic Party's election committee, arriving late in the afternoon.

On this day, the court warned Lee's side, saying, "If you continue not to appear, we may consider compulsory summons."

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is greeting citizens and supporters on the morning of the 19th at Jungang Market in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee did not attend the trial on charges including breach of trust and bribery related to Daejang-dong, Seongnam FC, and Baekhyeon-dong, held under the jurisdiction of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 33 (Presiding Judge Kim Dong-hyun). Although Lee submitted a letter of absence the day before, the court did not approve it. Nevertheless, he did not appear in court. Instead, Lee participated in an election campaign schedule in the Gangwon region that morning.

The prosecution strongly protested Lee's absence. The prosecution stated, "The defendant in a criminal trial did not appear due to personal political activities," and appealed to the court, "If unauthorized absences continue, compulsory measures to ensure attendance should be taken."

Lee's defense attorney countered, "As the leader of the main opposition party, he is engaged in the election," and added, "Considering the importance of elections in our country, which adopts constitutional party democracy, it should be fully considered that this is not just a personal issue of Lee."

When Lee's side requested that absence be allowed only until the election day on the 10th of next month, the court responded, "We cannot proceed with the trial considering political positions," and said, "Lee must attend when the trial date is set." The court also warned, "I understand that the National Assembly does not convene during the election period, so compulsory summons may be considered then, so please attend as much as possible."

Yu Dong-gyu, former Planning Director of Seongnam Urban Development Corporation, who appeared as a witness that day, refused to testify, saying, "The court told me to definitely appear, so I gave up running for office, but the defendant (Lee) did not come."

The court tried to persuade him, saying, "If you say 'I cannot testify unless Lee appears,' we will have no choice but to postpone the trial until Lee appears," but when former Director Yu repeatedly refused to testify, the court ultimately postponed the trial.