President Yoon's mother-in-law accused of forging bankbook balance appears in appellate court trial

Published 04 Nov.2022 22:28(KST)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] The first appeal trial regarding the forgery of bank balance certificates involving Choi Eun-soon, mother-in-law of President Yoon Seok-yeol, was held on the afternoon of the 4th. The charges applied to Choi include forgery of private documents, use of forged private documents, and violation of the Real Name Real Estate Act.

The trial took place around 4:40 PM at the Uijeongbu District Court Criminal Division 3, presided over by Chief Judge Shin Young-hee. The court confirmed Choi’s position, stating that she admits to the charge of forging the balance certificate but claims she was deceived by Ahn (co-defendant), denies the charge of using forged private documents, and argues that some other charges involve unfair sentencing. The court also inquired about the submitted materials and requested additional documents such as account statements and contracts necessary for the judgment.

Choi was indicted on charges including forging balance certificates to make it appear that approximately 34.9 billion KRW was deposited in a savings bank in four installments from April 1 to October 11, 2013, during the purchase process of land in Dochon-dong, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province. She is also accused of colluding with Ahn to file a lawsuit on August 7, 2013, demanding the return of the deposit related to the Dochon-dong land, submitting forged balance certificates worth about 10 billion KRW to the court.

In the first trial on December last year, the court sentenced Choi to one year in prison, stating, "The amount on the forged balance certificates is large, the crimes were committed repeatedly over time, and the forged certificates were submitted as evidence to undermine the fairness of the trial. Additionally, it appears that substantial profits were gained by purchasing real estate under a false name."