Prosecutors: "Evidence of Ewha-yeong Incident Leaked to Democratic Party... Distorted Interpretation"

The prosecution urged the court to investigate the circumstances and prevent recurrence after evidence materials related to former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young, who is on trial for bribery charges involving Ssangbangwool Group, were leaked to the Democratic Party of Korea.

Former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young [Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the legal community on the 8th, at the 27th hearing of Lee’s case on bribery under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes and violations of the Political Funds Act held the previous day at Suwon District Court Criminal Division 11 (Presiding Judge Shin Jin-woo), the prosecution pointed out, "On the 21st of last month, the court warned about the recent leak of court witness interrogation transcripts, but the very next day on the 22nd, evidence materials related to the case were leaked and posted on the Democratic Party of Korea’s website."

Earlier, on the 19th of last month, a portion of the witness interrogation transcript (recording) from Lee’s trial was posted on the social media account of Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. The prosecution raised concerns about this in court, and the court warned that it was "highly inappropriate." Lee’s defense attorney stated, "We did not provide it to the Democratic Party," but explained, "However, it was given to the lawyer who attended the defendant’s prosecution investigation."

The following day, a press release titled "Ignoring revealed evidence and prosecuting Ssangbangwool with predetermined conclusions, the prosecution must stop the North Wind manipulation investigation" was posted on the Democratic Party’s website press release board, and at the end of the post, part of the IR (Investor Relations) materials of Nanos, a Ssangbangwool affiliate, was attached.

The prosecution pointed to this material, saying, "It appears to have been viewed and copied by the prosecution," emphasizing, "Article 266-16 of the Criminal Procedure Act strictly prohibits providing trial records to third parties for purposes other than the trial, and violations are subject to criminal penalties."

They continued, "Above all, the material has been distorted and misinterpreted to defend a specific defendant," adding, "Several Democratic Party lawmakers were mobilized to hold a press conference claiming the prosecution’s investigation ignored objective evidence, and Leader Lee Jae-myung mentioned this material along with other cases in which he was indicted at the Supreme Council."

They also criticized, "Even if claims are made following procedures in an open trial, if the leader of the majority party distorts and disseminates leaked materials at the Supreme Council, it inevitably suggests that this case is subject to undue external influence," pointing out, "This infringes on the right to a fair trial in court."

In response, Lee’s defense attorney said, "The lawyer Hyun Geun-taek, who attended the defendant’s prosecution investigation, requested to see the records, so we gave them," but added, "We do not know for what reason or through what route they were given to the Democratic Party." He continued, "We are also embarrassed and sorry about this," adding, "However, the defendant was in detention and was completely unaware of this situation."

The court stated, "The prosecution’s claims have merit," warning, "Even if this does not constitute a violation of the law, everyone knows that such incidents can have an inappropriate influence on the trial, which is highly inappropriate."

The court further said, "Defense counsel, please check whether there are any circumstances of leaks in other forms as mentioned by the prosecution."

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