'Rejection of An Jung-kwon's Bail Request on "Insulting Moon Couple" Charges... "Concerns of Flight and Evidence Tampering"'

Ahn Jung-kwon, who is accused of insulting former President Moon Jae-in and his wife
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Ahn Jung-kwon (43), CEO of the video platform 'Bellado,' who was indicted for insulting former President Moon Jae-in and his wife, applied for bail during the first trial but was denied.

The Criminal Division 13 of Incheon District Court (Chief Judge Ho Seong-ho) announced on the 21st that it dismissed Ahn's bail application. Ahn was indicted and detained on charges of insult and violation of the Public Official Election Act.

The court stated the reason for dismissal, saying, "The defendant poses a risk of fleeing or destroying evidence," and "there is no special reason to grant bail."

During the bail hearing on the 19th of last month, Ahn appealed, "I need to exercise my right to defense, but 45 days have passed in detention," and "I am physically uncomfortable due to cervical disc and lower body nerve paralysis symptoms, so I ask the court to make a wise judgment."

Ahn was detained and indicted on charges of insulting former President Moon and his wife by holding seven rallies near the private residence in Pyeongsan Village, Yangsan City, Gyeongnam, from May 12 to 30, shortly after Moon's retirement, using a loudspeaker to utter curses 48 times.

He is also accused of broadcasting defamatory content 13 times against Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea and a candidate in the 20th presidential election, from September last year to March this year.

From 2020 to this year, he has been indicted 15 times on charges including defamation and insult under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection.

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