'Song Young-gil Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison for Illegal Political Funds... Detained in First Trial'

Song Young-gil, leader of the Sonamu Party, who was indicted on suspicion of distributing cash envelopes at the Democratic Party's party convention and receiving illegal political funds, was sentenced to two years in prison in the first trial.

Song Young-gil, representative of Sonamudang. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 8th, the 21st Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Heo Kyung-moo) sentenced Song, who was charged with violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (bribery), the Political Parties Act, and the Political Funds Act, to two years in prison and ordered his detention in court.

The court found Song guilty of receiving illegal political funds under the guise of donations through the external organization supporting and assisting political activities, the incorporated association "Peace and Livelihood Research Institute" (Meoksayeon). However, he was acquitted of the charges related to the cash envelopes, as the court did not recognize the evidentiary value of the recorded phone conversations of former Democratic Party Deputy Secretary-General Lee Jeong-geun, which triggered the investigation into the cash envelopes.

Song was indicted on charges of involvement in distributing cash envelopes totaling 66.5 million won to party lawmakers and regional headquarters chiefs from March to April 2021 to secure his election as party leader at the Democratic Party convention. He also faces charges of receiving a total of 763 million won in illegal political funds under the guise of donations from seven businesspeople through Meoksayeon between January 2020 and December 2021.

Previously, the prosecution demanded a nine-year prison sentence for Song at the sentencing hearing in November last year. The prosecution stated, "The defendant is a five-term lawmaker and former mayor of Incheon Metropolitan City, a person who should have had a higher level of compliance awareness, but he abused his public position for private gain and violated his duty of integrity." They added, "He led the receipt of political funds by turning Meoksayeon into his political external organization, induced corporate donations, and used illegal means to evade the regulations of the Political Funds Act," explaining the reasons for the sentence demand.

On the other hand, in his final statement, Song argued, "The prosecution demanded nine years in prison, claiming that the crime harms party democracy, but Song Young-gil's election was a revolution in the history of the Democratic Party," and said, "The victory of a third candidate, not from any faction, was a victory for grassroots democracy." He also stated, "This indictment is a clear political retaliation investigation."