Labor Jin, Suhyup Central Association President, Fined 900,000 Won Again in Appeal for 'Violation of Consignment Election Law'

Labor Jin, the chairman of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, who was indicted for violating the donation restrictions under the Entrusted Election Act and sentenced to a fine of 900,000 won in the first trial, received the same sentence in the appellate court.

The Criminal Division 3-3 of Changwon District Court in Gyeongnam (Presiding Judge Jeong Hyun-hee) dismissed Chairman Noh's appeal claiming innocence on the 19th and sentenced him to a fine of 900,000 won, the same as the original trial.

Nodongjin, President of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives. Photo by the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives

Chairman Noh was prosecuted on charges of sending wreaths and flowerpots worth approximately 2.57 million won to institutions operating fisheries cooperative heads, who are voters, from September 2022 to January last year, ahead of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives chairman election held in February last year.

Previously, the prosecution demanded a fine of 5 million won for Chairman Noh.

The Entrusted Election Act does not consider providing customary money or goods to institutions, organizations, or facilities as donation acts, but providing wreaths and flowerpots is judged as a donation act.

If a sentence of 1 million won or more in fines is confirmed for violating this law, the election becomes invalid.

The court stated, “The legal reasoning of the original trial was not incorrect, and the sentence of the original trial cannot be said to have exceeded the reasonable range of discretion,” and “There are no new circumstances to be reflected in sentencing after the original trial.”

After the verdict, Chairman Noh said, “I have no intention to appeal,” and added, “Since the lives of fishermen are difficult, I will do my best in my work.”

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