"Clear Evidence Disclosure... Expectation of Swift Trial"
Park Jung-hoon, a member of the People Power Party, released a recorded phone conversation in which he claims that Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, instructed Kim Mo, the former secretary to ex-Seongnam Mayor Kim Byung-ryang, to commit perjury.
On the 17th, Park held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office and after revealing the recorded call, he said, "Now that clear evidence has been disclosed, I hope the court will not be swayed by Lee’s lies and will deliver a fair and swift verdict."
The 'perjury instruction' case centers on the allegation that Lee, during his 2018 trial for violating the Public Official Election Act, asked Kim Mo, who was then a witness and secretary to former Mayor Kim, to give false testimony. Prosecutors suspect that Lee, who was convicted in 2004 for involvement in the 'KBS PD impersonation of a prosecutor incident,' was indicted for violating the Public Official Election Act after claiming at a 2018 local election debate that he was "falsely accused," and that he requested Kim to provide false testimony to secure a not guilty verdict.
According to the recorded call released by Park, Lee called Kim Mo and said, "If you could talk about how I was mainly the target, and that this case had a very political background, it would be helpful." He added, "The prosecution had to go after me, and the Seongnam city government and KBS all had aligned interests. It was a case where pinning it on me was beneficial to them."
In the recording, Lee also said, "I will send you a brief of our defense arguments. Since it was our claim back then, try to recall it." Kim Mo responded, "Based on what I have seen and understood, how would you like me to shape the direction? I will adjust accordingly."
After the press conference, Park told reporters that the recording had been submitted as evidence in Lee’s trial, but "the content cannot be disclosed publicly. Some parts of it have been made public." He added, "If this does not qualify as perjury instruction, then the concept of perjury instruction should be removed from South Korean criminal law because this is a clear case." He emphasized, "The judiciary has often handed down severe prison sentences for perjury instruction. If Lee is sentenced to prison, it will be a very important ruling that could have various impacts on his future political career."
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