Released 'Lee's Close Associate' Kim Yong "The Truth Is Emerging"

Kim Yong, former deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute, who was released on bail after six months of detention, said, "I will definitely uncover the substantive truth and will not bring disgrace to those who joined forces in the presidential election."

Kim Yong, former deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute and close aide to Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, was released on bail on the afternoon of the 4th and is leaving Seoul Detention Center.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

At around 8:10 p.m. on the 4th, as he left Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang-si, Gyeonggi Province, former Deputy Director Kim stated, "The truth is being revealed through the trial."

When reporters asked, "Did you prepare presidential primary funds without the knowledge of Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea?" he replied, "I did not prepare anything separately at all, and the election was conducted according to principles."

Former Deputy Director Kim is on trial for allegedly conspiring with former Director Yoo and lawyer Jung to receive 847 million won in four installments from lawyer Nam under the pretext of presidential election funds between April and August 2021, around the time of the Democratic Party's preliminary presidential primary.

The prosecution believes that Kim, who served as the general deputy director of Lee’s campaign, was responsible for fundraising and organizational management during the presidential election. In February 2021, Kim reportedly told former Director Yoo that he was "circulating around Gwangju" and requested about 2 billion won for presidential election funds. Lawyer Nam, who received this information, is believed to have sent the money through lawyer Jung and former Director Yoo. Of the money handed over by lawyer Nam, 100 million won was spent by former Director Yoo, and 147 million won was not delivered, so it was determined that Kim actually received a total of 600 million won.

According to the Criminal Procedure Act, which allows a defendant to be detained for up to six months from the time of indictment until the first trial verdict, Kim’s detention period ended on the 7th.

The court granted the bail request on the same day, imposing conditions such as a deposit of 50 million won, submission of a pledge to prevent evidence tampering, prohibition of contact with persons involved in the case, and attachment of an electronic monitoring device.

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