'Involvement with Chongryon' 60s Charged under National Security Law Acquitted after 41 Years

Woo Mo (65), who was wrongfully convicted during the Chun Doo-hwan regime for alleged involvement with the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), was acquitted after 41 years.

Court
Photo by Asia Economy DB

The Criminal Division 13 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Kim Woo-su, Kim Jin-ha, and Lee In-su) acquitted Woo on the 13th in a retrial related to charges of espionage and other accusations.

Woo was accused of sympathizing with a Japanese international student who infiltrated South Korea after being recruited by Chongryon while he was a university student in 1981, and of possessing anti-state materials, leading to his conviction the following year for violating the National Security Act.

The prosecution argued that Woo's actions did not clearly pose a danger, and since Woo's accomplice had already been acquitted through a retrial, they requested the court to acquit Woo as well.

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