Will the 'Jeong Young-hak Recording' Be Publicly Released in Court This Week... Yoodonggyu's Health as a 'Variable'

Mr. Kim Man-bae (left), Lawyer Nam Wook, Accountant Jung Young-hak [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The transcript of accountant Jeong Young-hak, a key piece of evidence in the 'Daejang-dong Development Special Favoritism Suspicion' case, is expected to be publicly disclosed in court for the first time during this week's trial. However, the health condition of former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation Planning Director Yoo Dong-gyu, who was recently reported to have attempted suicide, has emerged as a variable in the trial proceedings.

At 10 a.m. that day, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 22 (Presiding Judge Lee Joon-cheol) held a continuation hearing for five defendants, including former Director Yoo and Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management (Hwacheon Daeyu).

The court plans to conduct witness examination of accountant Jeong to verify the evidentiary validity of the audio recordings. The prosecution is expected to focus questions on accountant Jeong regarding the circumstances under which he recorded conversations with Kim and others, as well as the reasons for submitting the recordings to the prosecution.

Accountant Jeong's transcript is regarded by the prosecution as key evidence proving the conspiracy of Kim and others. The recordings reportedly include disputes between accountant Jeong and Kim over shared expenses, and promises to pay hundreds of billions of won from dividend profits to former Director Yoo.

On the other hand, Kim and lawyer Nam Wook, owner of Hwacheon Daeyu's subsidiary Cheonhwa Dongin No. 4, have challenged the evidentiary validity of the recordings, suggesting that the files may have been manipulated or that files different from the originals were submitted.

Under the Criminal Procedure Act, evidentiary validity refers to the legal qualification to be used as strict proof material. Evidence lacking evidentiary validity cannot be used as proof of guilt even if its content is true, nor can it be submitted as evidence in court. Only when evidentiary validity is recognized can the probative value (substantive value of evidence) be considered. The court selected about 30 hours from the total recordings and scheduled evidence investigation sessions for that day and the 26th, 28th, and 29th.

However, the morning hearing was stalled as former Director Yoo, after confirming his attendance, expressed his intention to return to the detention center, and the court reviewed whether to allow this. It was reported that former Director Yoo had attempted suicide last week by ingesting a large amount of sleeping pills in the detention center, received hospital treatment, and returned, but his health remains poor. His lawyer appealed to the court, saying, "(Former Director Yoo) is unable to eat. There are aftereffects," and "Just sitting here like this is a harsh ordeal."

Nevertheless, the court stated, "As a lawyer, such statements are possible, but there is a procedure," and said it had not confirmed objective evidence related to the alleged suicide attempt claimed by former Director Yoo's side. In response, former Director Yoo's lawyer said, "If the defendant is told to stay here all day, I think it is something I cannot do as a lawyer," and there was even an incident where he left the courtroom without permission.

The court explained that after further confirming both sides' positions in the afternoon hearing, it would check former Director Yoo's health status on the morning of the 26th and proceed with future procedures. Ideally, all defendants should attend together to conduct the witness examination of accountant Jeong. The prosecution suggested, "Proceed according to the scheduled dates, but if former Director Yoo is struggling, how about adjusting the schedule?"

Earlier, Kim and others were indicted for conspiring with former Director Yoo to cause damage to the corporation by allowing the private company Hwacheon Daeyu to unjustly acquire at least 65.1 billion won in land development dividend profits and about 117.6 billion won in implementation profits.

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