Park Suhong's Older Brother Appeals 2-Year Prison Sentence... Appeals Five Days After First Trial Verdict

Appeal Filed at Seoul Western District Court on the 19th
1st Trial Court Judges Judge "Embezzlement of 2 Billion Won Over 10 Years"

Entertainer Park Su-hong (53)'s older brother, who was sentenced to two years in prison in the first trial for embezzling tens of billions of won from Park's personal funds and the agency's funds, has appealed the verdict.

On the 19th, Park Jin-hong (56), Park Su-hong's older brother, submitted an appeal to the Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Western District Court (Presiding Judge Bae Sung-joong), which handled the first trial on his embezzlement charges under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (Special Act). Earlier, on the 14th, the first trial court partially recognized Park's embezzlement of company funds and sentenced him to two years in prison. Considering there was no risk of flight or evidence destruction, he was not detained in court. Additionally, Lee (53), Park's wife and Su-hong's sister-in-law, was acquitted.

Jin Hong (56), the older brother of broadcaster Park Soo-hong, who was indicted on charges of embezzling several billion won from Park's personal funds and the agency's money, is seen leaving after the first trial sentencing at the Seoul Western District Court on the afternoon of the 14th.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The couple was prosecuted for embezzling 6.2 billion won from entertainment agencies Lael and Mediaboom, which they operated from 2011 to 2021, including Park Su-hong's appearance fees. The prosecution alleged that Park diverted 1.17 billion won for real estate purchases, 90 million won for unauthorized use of other funds, 90 million won using the agency's credit card, 2.9 billion won withdrawn without authorization from Park Su-hong's personal account, and 1.9 billion won through false employee registrations for salary transfers. However, the first trial court judged the embezzled amount to be about 2 billion won and acquitted him of diverting approximately 1.6 billion won of Su-hong's personal funds. Nevertheless, the court found him guilty of using the corporate card for non-business purposes, paying personal attorney fees with company funds, and registering fake employees who did not work at the company to pay salaries and then reclaiming and using those funds. Park was indicted in October 2022 and was released in April last year after the expiration of his detention period, continuing the trial without detention.

The victim, Park Su-hong's side, stated they would actively submit an appeal opinion to the prosecution, and it is expected that the prosecution will also appeal soon. Previously, the prosecution sought seven years in prison for Park and three years for his wife Lee.

Park Su-hong's legal representative, lawyer Noh Jong-eon, said in a meeting with reporters after the trial, "We intend to dispute the acquittal on the grounds that the family company's funds were used for the parents or Park Su-hong," adding, "We plan to focus on asserting the embezzlement of the assets earned by Park Su-hong." Meanwhile, separately, the Seoul Western District Court is also handling a damages lawsuit filed by Park Su-hong against his older brother and his wife for about 19 billion won. Additionally, Park Su-hong's sister-in-law Lee is also on trial for defamation for spreading false information about Park Su-hong's private life.

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