Unification Church 100 Million Won Case on Appeal... Kwon Seongdong's Side Claims "Special Prosecutor Lacked Authority and Used Illegally Collected Evidence"

Sentencing Scheduled for April 23

The legal team representing Kwon Seongdong, a member of the People Power Party who was sentenced to two years in prison in the first trial on charges of receiving 100 million won in illegal political funds from the Unification Church, argued in the appeals trial that the special prosecutor lacked investigative authority in this case and that illegally collected evidence was used.

Kwon Seongdong, a member of the People Power Party, who was sentenced to two years in prison in the first trial for receiving 100 million won in illegal political funds from the Unification Church. Photo by Yonhap News

On the afternoon of March 5, the Seoul High Court’s Criminal Division 2-1 (Presiding Judges Baek Seungyeop, Hwang Seungtae, and Kim Younghyun) held the first hearing for Assemblyman Kwon, who is accused of violating the Political Funds Act. Kwon’s defense team argued, “This case does not fall within the investigation scope assigned to the Kim Keonhee special prosecutor team (headed by Special Prosecutor Min Junggi), and therefore the team had no jurisdiction.” They continued, “Illegally collected evidence was used in the initial trial, and the right to cross-examination was substantially infringed.” They added, “Even if guilt is recognized, the original sentence is excessive and should be overturned.”

In contrast, the special prosecutor’s side stated, “Although the first trial recognized Kwon’s guilt, the sentence imposed was lighter than the prosecution’s request,” and, “Given the severity of the offense, the sentence does not match the gravity of the crime. We ask the appeals court to correct this and impose a harsher penalty.”

Kwon was indicted and detained on charges of accepting 100 million won from Yoon Youngho, former head of the Unification Church World Headquarters, in January 2022, ahead of the 20th presidential election, allegedly in exchange for influence-peddling following Yoon Sukyeol’s election as president.

The court plans to conduct witness examinations on March 19, and additional witness and defendant examinations are scheduled for April 9. Sentencing is expected to take place on April 23.

Previously, on January 28, the first trial court sentenced Kwon to two years in prison and ordered the forfeiture of 100 million won for violating the Political Funds Act. The court stated, “After receiving the money, Kwon arranged a meeting between Yoon, the former headquarters chief, and President-elect Yoon Sukyeol, personally attended Unification Church events, and otherwise helped expand the Church’s influence at Yoon’s request.” The court also noted, “He even provided Yoon with confidential information about investigations into the Unification Church leadership’s overseas gambling activities.”

Both Kwon and the special prosecutor appealed the verdict. On the day of sentencing, Kwon’s team immediately filed an appeal with the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 27 (Presiding Judge Woo Inseong). Kwon’s side stated, “The guilty verdict in the first trial is completely unacceptable. We will appeal immediately to correct this miscarriage of justice.”

The special prosecutor’s team also filed an appeal on February 3, stating, “During the investigation, the defendant attempted to destroy evidence using his influence and consistently denied his crimes despite clear evidence. Given the gravity and egregiousness of the case, the first trial’s sentence does not correspond to the defendant’s culpability.”

If the first trial’s verdict is finalized, Kwon will lose his seat in the National Assembly and will be barred from running for public office for the next 10 years.

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