Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated regarding his violation of the Public Official Election Act case, "Although the prosecution abused its power to fabricate evidence and manipulate the case, everything will ultimately come to justice."
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who was indicted on charges of making false statements related to the 'Kim Moon-gi and Baekhyeon-dong allegations,' is responding to reporters' questions as he attends the first trial sentencing hearing for violation of the Public Official Election Act held at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 20th. [Image source=Yonhap News]
On the 20th, Lee appeared at the trial held by the 34th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Han Seong-jin) and said, "Things in this world cannot be forcibly fabricated or created."
Lee said, "In today's trial, I will have the opportunity to speak, and the lawyers will also present their arguments, so if the public pays close attention, they will be able to fully understand what the truth is." He added, "All of this will be recorded in history, and the people will make the judgment," and said, "The court, which is the last bastion of human rights and democracy, will properly judge the truth of the case and make a just decision."
When reporters asked whether Lee regretted the statements for which he was indicted for violating the Public Official Election Act and how he felt about facing the first sentencing among the many cases, he did not respond and headed into the courtroom. Accompanying Lee at the scene were Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, Lee Hae-sik, chief secretary to the party leader, and Democratic Party lawmakers including Kim Byung-joo and Jeon Hyun-hee.
That morning, the defendant's examination related to Lee's 'false statements about Baekhyeon-dong,' which had not been completed on the previous date, was conducted. The prosecution questioned Lee about his remarks during the October 2021 National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee’s inspection of Gyeonggi Province, where he stated that "the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport under the Park Geun-hye administration coerced to approve the change of land use." Lee reiterated that the controversial four-step upward change in the land use of the Baekhyeon-dong site of the Korea Food Research Institute was the result of pressure from the Park Geun-hye administration on Seongnam City to facilitate the smooth progress of the national project involving the relocation of public institutions.
Previously, in a broadcast interview in December 2021 when he was the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, Lee claimed he did not know the late Kim Moon-gi, head of Development Division 1 at Seongnam Urban Development Corporation, and during the same year’s Gyeonggi Province inspection, he is accused of making false statements that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport pressured to change the land use of the Baekhyeon-dong Korea Food Research Institute site.
The court decided to hold the sentencing hearing in the afternoon. The sentencing is expected to proceed with the prosecution presenting the recommended sentence followed by Lee’s final statement. Considering that it usually takes about a month from sentencing to verdict, the first trial verdict is likely to be announced between October and November. If Lee is sentenced to a fine of 1 million won or more for violating the Public Official Election Act, he will lose his seat as a lawmaker and be disqualified from running for office for the next five years, effectively preventing him from running in the next presidential election.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
