Democratic Party Urges "Clarify Position and Apologize to the Public" Over Yoon's Mother-in-Law's Court Detention

Choi Eun-soon, the mother-in-law of President Yoon Seok-yeol (second from the left), is moving to the courtroom for the appeal trial related to charges including forgery of bank account balance certificates at the Uijeongbu District Court in Ganeung-dong, Uijeongbu-si, Gyeonggi-do on the 21st.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Democratic Party of Korea urged President Yoon Seok-yeol to make a statement and apologize regarding the legal detention of his mother-in-law, Choi Eun-soon, on charges including forgery of bank account balance certificates.

Park Sung-joon, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, criticized on the 22nd during a briefing, saying, "President Yoon asserted during the last presidential election that Choi never caused even a single won of damage," and added, "With Choi's detention, President Yoon has deceived the public with lies."

He continued, "It is shameless to have defended her before the election by claiming she was innocent, and now, despite illegal activities being revealed and her legal detention, to remain indifferent," emphasizing, "President Yoon should clarify his position on Choi's legal detention and apologize to the public."

Spokesperson Park stated, "This is only a trailer; the main story has not even begun," and noted, "Suspicions of stock manipulation at Deutsche Motors, preferential treatment in the Gongheung district of Yangpyeong, and preferential route changes for the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway are all directed at First Lady Kim Geon-hee's family."

He raised his voice, saying, "This is the first time a president's in-law family has been surrounded by such allegations," and added, "We must uncover the judicial risks involving the president's in-law family, ranging from malicious fraud crimes to typical power-related scandals."

He further added, "If there is a cartel of vested interests or privileges that President Yoon talks about, the president's in-law family is right at the center," and said, "We must thoroughly clean up the privilege cartel surrounding First Lady Kim and her family."

Earlier, the Criminal Division 3 of the Uijeongbu District Court sentenced Choi, who was indicted on charges including forgery of bank account balance certificates, to one year in prison, the same as in the first trial, and ordered her legal detention. Although Choi was sentenced to one year in prison in the first trial, she was not legally detained at that time.

The appellate court explained the reason for legal detention, stating, "The defendant's appeal is not acceptable considering all circumstances," dismissing the appeal, and adding, "The right to defense was sufficiently guaranteed up to the appellate trial, and the nature of the crime is very serious."

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