Gwangju Seo-gu Officials Receive Suspended Sentences Again on Appeal for Tampering with Parking Violation Records

Gwangju District Court. Photo by Song Bohyun

Employees of Gwangju Seo-gu Office who manipulated parking violation records to exempt fellow public officials and acquaintances have once again received suspended prison sentences in their appeals trial.

On the 19th, the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 2 (Presiding Judge Kim Young-a) dismissed the appeals of four Seo-gu Office employees indicted on charges including falsification of official electronic records, upholding the original verdict.

The court stated, "The sentences from the original trial fall within a reasonable range and are not excessively severe," explaining the reasoning for the sentencing.

From 2018 to 2022, these individuals were prosecuted for exempting fellow public officials and acquaintances from illegal parking fines without valid reasons after receiving requests, and were each sentenced in the first trial to four months in prison, suspended for one year.

At the time, the Gwangju City Audit Committee found that 52 current and former public officials (in 75 cases) had their illegal parking fines unjustly waived. Including members of the general public, a total of 4,169 fines were improperly exempted. In connection with this, one Seo-gu official at grade 5 or above received a reprimand, and five others received warnings without formal disciplinary action. Additionally, 28 employees at grade 6 or below were given minor disciplinary measures.

The four individuals brought to trial were those who directly manipulated the parking violation records. The defendants altered the records by entering false information that would qualify as grounds for exemption.

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