Political Broker Myung Tae-kyun Released on Bail After Free Opinion Poll Scandal... "Apologize for Causing Public Concern"

Political broker Myung Tae-kyun, who was indicted on charges of providing free opinion polls to former President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee, was released on bail on the 25th after being sentenced to prison in the first trial and taken into court custody.

This comes 43 days after the first-instance ruling on the 13th of last month.

As he left the Seoul Detention Center at around 1:56 p.m. that day, Myung told reporters, "I sincerely thank the judiciary for granting my bail."

"As a mere ordinary citizen living in the countryside, I have caused commotion in the country and worry to the public," he said, adding, "I sincerely apologize."

When asked by reporters about the stance of the special counsel team investigating Kim Keon-hee that custody investigation was appropriate, he replied, "I believe any ruling delivered by the South Korean judiciary should be respected."

The Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 7 (Presiding Judge Koo Hoi-keun), which is handling Myung's appeal, accepted Myung's request for bail the previous day.

Taking various circumstances into consideration, the court granted bail while imposing conditions such as banning contact with individuals related to the case and restricting media interviews.

The court also ordered him to appear at designated times and places whenever summoned by the court, and to obtain prior permission from the court if leaving the country or traveling for three days or more.

Myung was indicted on charges of providing 58 opinion polls worth approximately 270 million won free of charge to former President Yoon and his wife between June 2021 and March 2022.

The first trial court ruled that out of the charges, the results of 14 opinion polls were directly delivered to former President Yoon and his wife, constituting political fund donations, and sentenced Myung to one year and six months in prison.

Former President Yoon, who was accused of receiving free opinion polls from Myung, was sentenced to two years in prison.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.