A lawyer named Jang Young-ha, who falsely claimed during the last presidential election campaign that President Lee Jae-myung, then a prominent Democratic Party of Korea candidate, was linked to organized crime during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam, received a suspended prison sentence.
The Seoul High Court’s Criminal Division 7 (Judge Lee Jae-kwon) announced on the 22nd that Jang, indicted for publicizing false information under the Public Official Election Act, was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years. This overturned the not-guilty verdict from the first trial.
The court stated, “Jang publicized false claims, such as that a businessman with ties to organized crime had bribed Lee Jae-myung candidate, approximately four months before the 20th presidential election, with the intent to prevent his election. Such acts hinder voters’ rational judgment and distort decision-making.”
It added, “Considering that Lee candidate won by a narrow margin in the election, the impact of Jang’s actions cannot be ignored.”
In October 2021, ahead of the presidential election, Jang held a press conference claiming that President Lee had received approximately 2 billion Korean won from an international mafia group in exchange for business favors during his mayoral term.
The Democratic Party filed a complaint against Jang, but the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office decided not to indict him, determining that he had reported the allegations in good faith, believing...
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