Kwon Seongdong Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison in Appeal for Receiving 100 Million Won from Unification Church

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Kwon Seongdong, a lawmaker from the People Power Party who was indicted on charges of receiving illegal political funds from the Unification Church, was sentenced to two years in prison in his appeal trial, the same sentence as in the first trial.

On April 28, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 2-1 (Presiding Judges Baek Seungyeop, Hwang Seungtae, and Kim Younghyun) sentenced Assemblyman Kwon, who was tried for violating the Political Funds Act, to two years in prison and an additional forfeiture of 100 million won, the same as the first trial. The court dismissed the appeals by both Assemblyman Kwon and the special prosecutor's team.

Assemblyman Kwon was brought to trial on suspicion of receiving 100 million won in cash from Yoon Youngho, former head of the Unification Church World Headquarters, in January 2022, ahead of the 20th presidential election, along with a request for church support.

Kwon's side had argued that this case exceeded the scope of the special prosecutor’s investigation and that evidence obtained through search and seizure was collected illegally and therefore inadmissible. However, the court stated, "The facts of this case fall under the amended Article 2, Section 3 of the Kim Keonhee Special Prosecutor Act and are subject to investigation. The evidence obtained through search and seizure is recognized as circumstantial evidence to prove the motive and means of the crime, so it is admissible," thus rejecting Assemblyman Kwon's argument.

The court also rejected Assemblyman Kwon's claim that Yoon fabricated the accusations to cover up his own embezzlement charges. The court explained, "It is confirmed through KakaoTalk messages and other evidence that Mr. Yoon believed Assemblyman Kwon would continue to wield political influence even after resigning as party secretary-general during the presidential election. Given the potential impact and criminal liability of the delivered funds, it is difficult to view Mr. Yoon's statements as false allegations intended to frame the defendant."

The court criticized, "The collusion between political power and a specific religious group seriously undermines the constitutional value of the separation of church and state, making the offense extremely grave. As a five-term senior lawmaker, strict punishment is inevitable for betraying constitutional responsibilities." However, the court added, "The first trial's sentencing discretion, which considered Assemblyman Kwon's 30 years of public service and lack of prior convictions, falls within a reasonable range."

Previously, the first trial found Assemblyman Kwon guilty on all counts and sentenced him to two years in prison. Both Assemblyman Kwon's side and the special prosecutor's team appealed the verdict. At the appeal hearing, the special prosecutor's team sought a four-year prison sentence, the same as in the first trial.

Meanwhile, Yoon Youngho, who was indicted for delivering money and valuables to Assemblyman Kwon and First Lady Kim Keonhee for the purpose of lobbying on Unification Church-related issues, was sentenced to one year and six months in prison in his appeal trial-a four-month increase compared to the first trial-on the previous day.

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