Even if fleeing abroad during trial, punishment cannot be avoided... Ministry of Justice introduces 'statute of limitations suspension'

Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] From now on, even if a defendant on trial flees abroad to avoid criminal punishment, the statute of limitations for trial (25 years) will be suspended during the period of overseas stay, ensuring that they are punished to the end as the law changes.

On the 21st, the Ministry of Justice announced a legislative notice of the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act containing this content. It aims to revise Article 249, Paragraph 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act, which stipulates that the statute of limitations is deemed completed if 25 years pass without a final judgment from the time the suspect is indicted, known as the 'trial statute of limitations,' and explicitly specify the 'statute of limitations system.' Until now, there was no provision that the statute of limitations is suspended even if a criminal on trial flees abroad, causing problems where criminals who fled abroad for a long time during the trial could not be punished. This contrasts with the regulation that the statute of limitations for prosecution and execution of sentence is suspended so that suspects or criminals who have been investigated or convicted cannot avoid investigation or execution of sentence by fleeing abroad.

The background for the Ministry of Justice's decision to revise the trial statute of limitations appears to have been greatly influenced by a recent Supreme Court ruling that the statute of limitations cannot be applied to defendants who fled abroad. Last month, the Supreme Court's First Division (Presiding Justice Oh Kyung-mi) affirmed the original judgment that acquitted Mr. A, who was indicted in 1997 on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (fraud). An acquittal judgment is a ruling that terminates the lawsuit without determining guilt or innocence when the conditions for prosecution, such as the statute of limitations, have disappeared.

Mr. A was indicted in August 1997 on charges of defrauding victims of approximately 560 million won to raise funds for acquiring a nightclub in 1995. However, after attending the first trial in November of the same year, Mr. A fled to the United States, and the trial did not proceed. Eventually, Mr. A did not return, and in March 2020, the first trial court ruled an acquittal, stating that the trial statute of limitations had expired. At that time, the trial statute of limitations stipulated by the Criminal Procedure Act was 15 years. The trial statute of limitations was extended to 25 years when the Criminal Procedure Act was amended in December 2007.

Supreme Court Confirms Dismissal Ruling for Defendant Whose Statute of Limitations Expired Due to Overseas Evasion

Former Star Mobility Chairman Kim Bong-hyun, who fled and went into hiding during the trial [Image source=Yonhap News]

The escape of former Star Mobility Chairman Kim Bong-hyun, the main culprit of the Lime scandal, who fled abroad during the trial and was rumored to be staying overseas, also seems to have played a part. On the 11th of last month, before the sentencing trial for embezzlement charges amounting to 100 billion won, Kim fled, cutting off the electronic bracelet on his wrist near Paldang Bridge in Hanam City, Gyeonggi Province, and disappeared. Forty-one days have passed since then, and his whereabouts remain unknown. The Criminal Division 6 of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Lee Jun-dong) is investigating family members and acquaintances who helped Kim escape while tracking him, but has not yet secured any clues about his hiding place.

Kim's trials have been postponed. The trial for embezzlement charges under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes against Kim and others, which was scheduled to be held under the Seoul Southern District Court Criminal Division 13 (Presiding Judge Lee Sang-joo), has been postponed to January 12 of next year. This trial has been delayed three times since Kim fled.

The Ministry of Justice expects that this legal amendment will prevent cases like Mr. A and former Chairman Kim and resolve the imbalance with the statute of limitations suspension system at the investigation and execution stages. Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon emphasized, "This measure is to ensure that criminals are judged by the law no matter how long they flee abroad and to fill the legal gap."

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