Star math instructor Hyun Woo-jin, who was indicted on charges of paying massive sums of money to active-duty school teachers in exchange for math exam questions to be used in study materials, has been found not guilty in his first trial.
The Seoul Central District Court acquitted Hyun and the others on charges of violating the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, ruling that "the exchange of money and valuables among the defendants constitutes private transactions."
Two active-duty teachers who provided questions in exchange for money from Hyun, along with an employee identified as A at a textbook development company, were also all acquitted.
The court accepted Hyun's argument that "they merely exchanged legitimate compensation pursuant to a question-trading contract."
The court determined that the money Hyun paid to the teachers was not compensation for solicitation, but rather payment under a contract to buy and sell test questions.
The court stated, "Hyun was supplied with questions not only from active-duty teachers but also from professional companies, and the amounts paid to them were at a similar level to those paid to the teachers."
It further explained, "Hyun paid compensation only when the questions were reviewed, examined, and adopted for his study materials, and the active-duty teachers did not submit the questions they supplied to Hyun on their own school exams."
Hyun was put on trial in December of last year on charges of handing over a total of 346 million won to two active-duty teachers in exchange for questions from March 2020 to May 2023, and transferring 75 million won to an account under the name of another teacher's spouse.
Previously, prosecutors demanded a one-year prison sentence during the final sentencing hearing, arguing that Hyun's crime undermined public trust in public education.
Hyun did not appear in court today, having submitted an explanation for his absence.
Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video by Kim Na-on | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
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