[Breaking] Court: "Prosecutors' indictment of Cho Min is not an abuse of prosecution rights"... Fined 10 million won

Jo Min, who was sentenced to a fine of 10 million won in the first trial for allegations of entrance exam fraud, is leaving the Seoul Central District Court building. Photo by Heo Younghan younghan@

In the first trial sentencing hearing for Cho Min, daughter of Cho Kuk, leader of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, who was indicted on charges of 'admission corruption,' the court ruled that the prosecution's indictment could not be considered an abuse of prosecution rights. The court sentenced Cho to a fine of 10 million won.

On the 22nd, Judge Lee Kyung-sun of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 16 stated at Cho's sentencing hearing, where she was charged with forgery of official documents, obstruction of business, and obstruction of public officials by deception, "Considering the content of the case and the progress of the investigation and trial, there is a part that can accept the prosecutor's claim that it was necessary to file charges against Professor Jeong Gyeong-shim, whose guilt is certain, and to review whether to file charges against the defendant based on the defendant's conspiracy, intent, and degree of involvement through future developments."

The court also noted, "Whether the documents submitted to the medical graduate school were forged or false is a premise for determining the presence or absence of guilt regarding the charges in this case. In the cases related to Jeong Gyeong-shim and Cho Kuk, the forgery and falsity of the documents and the evidentiary validity of electronic information were fiercely disputed over a long period," adding, "Even if the defendant had been indicted together with Jeong Gyeong-shim, the judgment of the above premise facts would have been necessary first."

Furthermore, the court stated, "Considering these circumstances comprehensively, even if the prosecutor filed charges against the defendant after the cases involving Jeong Gyeong-shim and Cho Kuk proceeded, these circumstances alone do not prove that the defendant's right to a speedy trial was violated or that the prosecutor arbitrarily exercised prosecution rights to abuse them," and concluded, "Therefore, the defendant's counsel's claims regarding this matter are not accepted."

Earlier, at the first trial in December last year, Cho admitted all the charges against her but argued that the prosecution abused its rights and requested the court to dismiss the indictment, effectively asking for the indictment itself to be nullified without a trial on guilt or innocence.

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