Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon Sentenced to 10 Million Won Fine in 1st Trial Over Poll Cost Allegations; Faces Loss of Office if Confirmed

[Anchor]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has been sentenced to a fine of 10 million won in the first trial regarding allegations that political broker Myung Tae-kyun had his opinion poll costs covered by a third party. The court stated that "the sentencing of a penalty that strips him of his qualification for public office is inevitable," and if this sentence is finalized by the Supreme Court, Mayor Oh will lose his position.

Reporter Jung Hye-jin has the details.


[Reporter]

The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Settlement Division 22 sentenced Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to a fine of 10 million won today (July 22) in connection with the Myung Tae-kyun poll cost proxy payment allegations.

Mayor Oh was indicted without detention in December last year on charges of receiving opinion poll results a total of 10 times from political broker Myung Tae-kyun ahead of the April 7 by-election in 2021, and having a long-time supporter and businessman surnamed Kim cover 33 million won in polling costs instead.

In today's ruling, the court stated, "The motive for Mayor Oh to request opinion polls from Myung is recognized, and the fact that a supporter covered the poll costs on his behalf is also acknowledged."

The court recognized 5 out of the 10 opinion polls by Myung specified in the indictment as guilty, and determined that the polling costs paid by the businessman amounted to 21 million won.

The court explained the reasoning for the sentence, stating, "Conducting opinion polls commissioned by a candidate, which are prohibited by the Public Official Election Act, is of poor character," and "the sentencing of a penalty that strips him of public office qualification is inevitable."

If this sentence is finalized by the Supreme Court, Mayor Oh will lose his mayoral position in accordance with the Public Official Election Act.

Mayor Oh expressed that he cannot accept the first-instance ruling and stated his intention to appeal.

[Oh Se-hoon / Mayor of Seoul: The ruling was handed down based solely on the statements of the notorious liar Myung Tae-kyun and indirect evidence, with absolutely no direct evidence. I will contest this in the appellate court.]

While the special counsel team evaluated the ruling as "very meaningful," they plan to review an appeal regarding the parts that resulted in an acquittal.

Meanwhile, Kang Chul-won, former Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs of Seoul, and the businessman surnamed Kim, who were indicted along with Mayor Oh, were sentenced to fines of 3 million won and 5 million won, respectively.

(Photo: Yonhap News)

Reported by Jung Hye-jin | Video by Yang Hyun-chul | Video Editing by Wee Won-yang
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.