"Innocent Verdict Part: Misinterpretation of Facts and Legal Principles"
The prosecution appealed the first-instance ruling that sentenced former Ssangbangwool Group Chairman Kim Seong-tae to 2 years and 6 months in prison. Kim was indicted on charges related to an $8 million remittance to North Korea and bribery.
On the 17th, the Criminal Division 6 of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Seo Hyun-wook) stated, "We appealed on the grounds of factual misrecognition and legal error regarding the parts where the court acquitted on some charges of bribery, violation of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, violation of the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, and violation of the Political Funds Act, which differ from the prosecution's view."
They added, "Considering the relationship between the defendant and former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young, who received the bribes, as well as the scale, duration, and nature of the money and goods provided to the former deputy governor, we judged that a heavier sentence should be imposed on the defendant and appealed on the grounds of inappropriate sentencing."
On the 12th, the Criminal Division 11 of Suwon District Court (Presiding Judge Shin Jin-woo) sentenced former Chairman Kim to 2 years and 6 months in prison and 1 year in prison with a 2-year probation. The court separately sentenced him to imprisonment for violations of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, bribery, and the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, while giving a suspended sentence for the violation of the Political Funds Act.
However, the court acquitted him on some charges of violating the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, bribery, and the Political Funds Act, reasoning that "there was no intent to pay the Korean Workers' Party, which is subject to financial sanctions," or that "there was no recognized connection to official duties."
Accordingly, the court found that $2 million out of the $8 million remittance to North Korea, as charged by the prosecution, was paid to the North Korean side. Although the first-instance court sentenced him to imprisonment, it did not detain former Chairman Kim in court, citing no concerns about evidence destruction or flight risk.
Former Chairman Kim was indicted on charges of providing political funds amounting to approximately 334 million KRW, including about 259 million KRW in bribes, to former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young from July 2018 to July 2022 by means such as providing Ssangbangwool Group corporate cards and vehicles and paying false salaries to close aides.
He is also accused of leading the remittance to North Korea. The remittance case involves former Chairman Kim allegedly paying $5 million for North Korea smart farm support projects in Gyeonggi Province in 2019 and $3 million for the visit expenses of then-Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, to North Korea.
The prosecution understood that former Chairman Kim was promised "priority business opportunities for future North Korea-related projects promoted by Gyeonggi Province" and "joint promotion of North Korea projects" in exchange for the payments.
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