Supreme Court Dismisses Prosecution's Rehearing
Upholds Lower Court Ruling on Illegality in Part of Search and Seizure
Annuls Cash Seizure and Search Measures
The Supreme Court has ruled that part of the prosecution's search and seizure process against former Democratic Party lawmaker No Woong-rae, who is on trial for repeatedly accepting bribes in exchange for facilitating solar power plant supply projects, was illegal.
The Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Heung-gu) dismissed the prosecution's rehearing petition on the 18th with this reasoning.
On November 16, 2022, during a search and seizure at No's residence in Mapo-gu, Seoul, the prosecution discovered over 300 million won in cash inside a wardrobe. The scope of the initial search warrant (first warrant) did not include cash. Accordingly, the prosecution temporarily sealed the cash separately in a box and then obtained an additional search warrant (second warrant) two days later to seize it. This explains the two search and seizure operations at No's residence on November 16 and 18, 2022, two days apart.
No filed a quasi-appeal with the Seoul Central District Court on the 28th of the same month, claiming the prosecution's search and seizure was illegal. In January this year, Judge So Jun-seop of the Criminal Division 32 at Seoul Central District Court partially accepted the quasi-appeal, stating that "removing cash from individual envelopes, placing it together, and sealing it constitutes separation and preservation that violates the wording of the warrant." The court recognized that although the prosecution was aware of the different amounts in each envelope and the method of storing the cash, their action of removing all cash from individual envelopes, placing it together in a box, and sealing it at once exceeded the permissible scope of the search warrant.
The prosecution filed a rehearing petition, but the Supreme Court upheld the lower court's ruling. Like the lower court, the Supreme Court found that the prosecution's initial search and seizure exceeded the scope designated in the warrant, and that obtaining an additional warrant to seize the large sum of money arbitrarily stored and sealed in a separate box during the first search was illegal.
Previously, courts have intervened in cases involving illegal search and seizure and evidence collection by the prosecution, including the appeal trial of Chairman Lee Jae-yong's unfair merger and illegal succession allegations, the Democratic Party's party convention 'money envelope scandal,' and former lawmaker Yoon So-ha's intimidation charges. This case adds another example.
Meanwhile, No is currently undergoing a first trial after being indicted without detention in March 2023 on charges of receiving 60 million won from businessman Park under the pretext of facilitating power plants and solar power projects, arranging permits for a logistics center, and election funds from February to December 2020. The problematic 300 million won was not included in the indictment.
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