'Shindo Sexual Assault' Pastor Lee Jae-rok of Manmin Church Released on Suspension of Sentence Execution

Pastor Lee Jae-rok of Manmin Central Holiness Church, who is serving a heavy sentence for repeatedly sexually assaulting several church members, has been temporarily released for health reasons.

Pastor Lee Jae-rok of Manmin Central Holiness Church
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the legal community on the 10th, the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office accepted Pastor Lee's request for suspension of sentence execution last January. It is known that he applied for the suspension to undergo brain tumor removal surgery.

Our Criminal Procedure Act stipulates that the execution of a prison sentence may be suspended if there is a significant concern that the execution will seriously harm health, if the person is over 70 years old, if the person is more than six months pregnant, or if there is no one to protect elderly direct ascendants or young direct descendants.

Pastor Lee was arrested and prosecuted on charges of sexually assaulting and molesting nine female members of Manmin Central Church over 40 times for several years. In August 2019, the Supreme Court confirmed his 16-year prison sentence, and he has been serving his sentence at Daegu Prison.

As the leader of a large church with 130,000 members, he was investigated for committing sexual crimes by exploiting his status, power, and the faith of the believers to render the victims unable to resist.

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