Prosecutors to Decide on Judicial Action Regarding Jo Min's 'Admission Fraud' Before Statute of Limitations Expires in August

The prosecution is reviewing whether to indict Cho Min (31), the daughter of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, on charges related to 'admission fraud.'

According to the legal community on the 19th, the 5th Trial Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Min-a), which is in charge of investigating the remaining cases involving the Cho family, is considering whether to indict Cho without detention on charges including obstruction of business related to admission fraud, obstruction of official duties by deception, use of forged official documents, and forgery of private documents.

On April 11, Cho Min, daughter of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, is speaking at the 'A Walk Through Cho Kuk's Legal Classics: Conversation with the Author' held at Kumuda Concert Hall in Haeundae-gu, Busan.

The prosecution's review of whether to take judicial action against Cho Min began because her conspiracy relationship was recognized in the Supreme Court's final guilty verdict against her mother, former Dongyang University professor Jung Kyung-shim.

Earlier, on January 27 last year, the Supreme Court confirmed a four-year prison sentence for former Professor Jung, ruling all charges related to Cho Min's admission fraud as guilty, explicitly stating in the judgment that "a conspiracy relationship with Cho Min and others is recognized."

On February 3, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced former Minister Cho Kuk to two years in prison and a fine of 6 million won, stating that he "conspired with Jung Kyung-shim and Cho Min to obstruct the admission screening process of Seoul National University College of Medicine." The court also judged that former Minister Cho personally forged the internship certificates from the Seoul National University Public Interest and Human Rights Law Center and Hotel Aqua Palace, which Cho Min submitted to the Seoul National University College of Medicine.

When the prosecution indicted former Professor Jung and former Minister Cho at the end of 2019, Cho Min was not indicted. This was a measure taken considering the situation where both her father and mother were simultaneously under investigation and indictment. It can also be seen as a decision to postpone until observing the progress of their trials and the court's judgments.

A prosecution official said, "In Cho Min's case, the most critical charge is related to her admission to Pusan National University College of Medicine, and since the statute of limitations will expire in August, it is true that we need to consider various factors and make a decision before then."

The official added, "The speculation in the media that she will be indicted seems to stem from the fact that the Supreme Court has confirmed the facts recognizing Cho Min as an accomplice, which narrows the prosecution's options. We will review and comprehensively judge the extent of her involvement and her repentance from multiple angles."

Meanwhile, some analysts suggest that Cho Min's active public activities?such as attending former Minister Cho's book concert, opening an Instagram account, and launching a YouTube channel?while publicly denying her charges may work against her.

In February, shortly after the first trial guilty verdict against former Minister Cho, Cho Min appeared on the YouTube channel "Kim Eo-jun's Humility is Difficult News Factory," saying, "I am proud. I have lived without shame. I have been told that I am fully qualified as a doctor."

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