Prosecutors: "Perjury, a serious crime disrupting judicial order"
Lee Jae-myung: "Never seen prosecutors act like this lately"
Court sets first trial verdict date for November 25
The prosecution has requested a three-year prison sentence for Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who was indicted on charges of requesting false testimony from Kim Jin-seong, the late Mayor of Seongnam Kim Byung-ryang's executive secretary. The court has scheduled the first trial verdict for Lee on November 25.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, raises his hand to supporters as he attends the first trial sentencing hearing on charges of perjury instruction at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 30th. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@
On the 30th, at the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 33 (Presiding Judge Kim Dong-hyun), during the sentencing hearing for the charge of instigating false testimony, the prosecution asked the court to impose this sentence on Lee. For Kim Jin-seong, who was also indicted on the false testimony charge, the prosecution requested a 10-month prison sentence.
The prosecution stated, "False testimony is a serious crime that inherently obstructs the swift and accurate determination of substantive truth, disrupts judicial order, and causes social confusion," adding, "Repeatedly lying about key matters that significantly influence voters' rational evaluation and instigating false testimony to conceal this fundamentally infringes on the fairness of elections, which are the foundation of democracy, and the people's right to vote."
Furthermore, the prosecution said, "The defendant repeatedly implanted his false claims into Kim Jin-seong as if they were established facts and secretly made him understand these claims through Telegram, which is a hotbed for various crimes," and "Especially, the day before the witness examination, the defendant provided Kim Jin-seong with the examination details in advance through his lawyer to ensure he was familiar with them." They continued, "This is a meticulous method rarely seen, comparable to providing an exam candidate with answers beforehand to achieve a perfect score," emphasizing, "Considering all these factors, strict punishment commensurate with the illegality and responsibility of the defendants is absolutely necessary."
In his final statement, Lee said, "At least in cases related to me, prosecutors in the Republic of Korea often hide evidence and distort it. They even fabricate evidence," and "I cannot understand how the prosecution can officially state that I am making up blatant lies."
Lee also said, "I have been in court as a lawyer for decades, but I have never seen prosecutors behave like this recently," and "They hide unfavorable evidence, patch things together, delete important evidence from the list?where else would you find such prosecutors?" He then requested, "I ask the judiciary of the Republic of Korea, which I trust, to make a judgment based on truth and justice."
Lee was indicted on charges of repeatedly calling Kim from December 2018 to January 2019 and requesting false testimony in the trial related to the 'impersonation of a prosecutor' case involving violations of the Public Official Election Act. Kim was also tried for giving false testimony as Lee requested.
Previously, in 2002, when Lee was a lawyer, he was indicted for impersonating a prosecutor in collusion with a KBS PD who was covering the 'Bundang Parkview preferential sale case' involving former Mayor Kim. In December 2004, he was fined 1.5 million won.
Co-defendant Kim has admitted all charges of false testimony. In contrast, Lee has denied the charge of instigating false testimony, claiming that the prosecution selectively edited and pieced together only parts of the entire recorded conversations.
Considering that sentencing usually takes about a month after the sentencing hearing, it is highly likely that the first trial verdict will be announced by November at the latest. If a prison sentence of more than a detention sentence is confirmed up to the Supreme Court for the charge of instigating false testimony, Lee will lose his parliamentary seat and be barred from running in elections for five years.
Meanwhile, Lee is also awaiting the first trial verdict on November 15 for a case involving violations of the Public Official Election Act. The prosecution has requested a two-year prison sentence. If Lee is sentenced to a fine exceeding 1 million won, he will lose his parliamentary seat and be disqualified from candidacy for five years.
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