Kwon Seongdong, Accused of Receiving 100 Million Won from Unification Church, Requests Bail After Three Months in Detention... Hearing Set for 17th

Bail Hearing to Be Held Alongside Closing Arguments on the 17th

The bail hearing for Kwon Seongdong, a member of the People Power Party who has been indicted and detained on charges of receiving 100 million won from the Unification Church, will take place on the 17th.

Kwon Sungdong, a member of the People Power Party, is attending the first trial on the charge of receiving illegal political funds from the Unification Church at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul, on the 3rd.

The 27th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Woo Inseong) announced during the continued trial for Assemblyman Kwon's alleged violation of the Political Funds Act, held on the 15th, that the bail hearing will be conducted together with the closing arguments on the 17th.

On the 12th, Assemblyman Kwon requested the court to allow him to stand trial without detention. This request comes about three months after he was detained on September 16. The specific reasons for his request have not been disclosed.

During the closing arguments, which mark the conclusion of the trial, the special prosecutor’s team led by Min Junggi, who indicted Assemblyman Kwon, will present their sentencing recommendation, and Assemblyman Kwon will deliver his final statement. Since sentencing typically occurs at least a month after the closing arguments, it is possible that the verdict for Assemblyman Kwon could be delivered as early as January next year.

Assemblyman Kwon is accused of receiving 100 million won in illegal political funds from Yoon Youngho, former head of the Unification Church’s World Headquarters, ahead of the 2022 presidential election, in exchange for requests to resolve issues facing the church.

During the continued trial on this day, the court called Yoon Youngho as a witness, following the previous hearing. At the hearing on the 12th, Yoon, who appeared as a witness, reversed his earlier position regarding the so-called “political lobbying” allegations that arose from his remarks, stating, “I never testified in that manner.”