'Wongdong Academy Fake Lawsuit and Hiring Corruption' Jo Guk's Brother, First Trial Concludes Today

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The first trial of Cho Kwon (53), the younger brother of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, will conclude on the 20th. This is the earliest trial to end among the various allegations involving the Cho family.

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 21 (Presiding Judge Kim Miri) will hear the final arguments from the prosecution and defense in the afternoon session of the day for Cho, who was indicted on charges including breach of trust under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes. The prosecution's sentencing recommendation and Cho's final statement will also take place. This comes about five months after the case was filed.

Cho was indicted on charges of securing construction payment claims based on false construction work while serving as the secretary-general of the Ungdong Foundation, and causing damages of over 11 billion won to the school corporation by filing sham lawsuits against the Ungdong Foundation in 2006 and 2017.

Additionally, Cho was brought to trial on charges of receiving over 100 million won in bribes from two applicants during the hiring of social studies teachers at Ungdong Middle School, affiliated with the school corporation, in 2016-2017, passing on exam questions and answers, and attempting to destroy evidence once the prosecution investigation began.

Throughout the trial, Cho's side denied most of the charges. In particular, regarding the false lawsuit charges, they argued that since Cho was completely unaware that the claims were false, no crime was committed. Witness testimonies related to this charge were conflicting in court. Regarding the teacher hiring corruption charges, Cho's side admitted to receiving money but claimed discrepancies in the amounts.

Although the court will make the final judgment, the legal community currently believes that Cho is likely to receive a prison sentence. While there is still room for dispute over the false lawsuit charges, much of the hiring corruption charges have been proven. Two accomplices accused of delivering bribes in exchange for teacher recruitment were sentenced to one year and one year and six months in prison respectively in January and are currently serving their sentences.

The sentencing for Cho is expected to take place next month. The court is likely to set the sentencing date after Cho's final statement on the day.

Meanwhile, the first trial of Cho Beomdong, a fifth cousin of former Minister Cho Kuk, is expected to conclude around June at the earliest. The trial of Professor Jung Kyungshim of Dongyang University is likely to continue until the second half of this year. The Cho Kuk case, which resumed after the April 15 general election, is cautiously expected to extend beyond this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.