Jeon Gwang-hoon COVID-19 Quarantine... Court Detention Likely to Be Delayed

Isolation treatment even with reasons for hospitalization... Coordination expected for direct interrogation and written examination

Jeon Gwang-hoon, Senior Pastor of Sarang Jeil Church.

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon, the head pastor of Sarang Jeil Church, tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), leading to expectations that the trial procedures to determine whether to re-detain him will be delayed. Even if there is a reason to revoke his bail, it is practically impossible to re-detain Pastor Jeon while he is undergoing isolation treatment.

According to the court on the 17th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 34 (Presiding Judge Heo Seon-ah) has not yet decided on the method or timing of the bail revocation hearing requested by the prosecution the previous day.

In the legal community, it is viewed that since Pastor Jeon tested positive for COVID-19, the court has no reason to expedite the hearing process. Therefore, the court is expected to coordinate the method and timing of the hearing, whether to conduct it in person or through written proceedings, while monitoring Pastor Jeon's treatment progress.

However, even if the hearing is held later, Pastor Jeon's infection and treatment process are unlikely to be significant factors influencing the court's judgment.

The key issue is whether Pastor Jeon's attendance at the rally held in front of Donghwa Duty-Free Shop on the 15th constitutes a violation of his bail conditions. The rally itself was legally held after the court accepted the suspension of execution requested by a conservative group. However, all suspension of execution requests filed by the group led by Pastor Jeon were dismissed.

Pastor Jeon's trial court granted his bail in April with the condition that he "must not participate in any rallies or demonstrations that may be related to the case or illegal." The court planned to hold a continuation trial on the 24th and conduct one or two more hearings before concluding the trial in September.

It is expected that the trial scheduled for the 24th will be postponed at the request of Pastor Jeon's side. Previously, Pastor Jeon attended the trial held on the 11th and stayed in the courtroom from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., during which he directly conducted witness examinations.

Accordingly, the court plans to keep Pastor Jeon on standby at his home on the 18th and respond based on the epidemiological investigation results from health authorities.

Meanwhile, according to the court, there have been several cases where individuals who appeared in court as parties or witnesses later tested positive for COVID-19.

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