Insurrection Special Counsel Drops Appeal Over Dismissed Graft Charge Against Former Minister Park Sung-jae, Citing Need for Speedy Trial

The special counsel team led by Cho Eun-seok investigating the insurrection has withdrawn its appeal regarding the dismissal of graft charges against former Minister of Justice Park Sung-jae, who was accused of accepting requests to cover up investigations involving Kim Keon-hee.

The special counsel team announced today (July 29) that "we have withdrawn the appeal filed against the part of the lower court ruling concerning former Minister Park Sung-jae that dismissed the violation of the Act on Prohibition of Improper Solicitation and Provision of Money and Valuables (Graft Control Act)."

Previously, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Settlement Division 33 (Presiding Judge Lee Jin-kwan) sentenced the former minister to 25 years in prison last month after he was put on trial on charges including playing a major role in an insurrection and abuse of power.

However, the court dismissed the charge under the Graft Control Act related to Kim Keon-hee.

The ruling was based on the rationale that the Telegram messages of former Minister Park, which served as the basis for investigating this charge, had no specific connection to the emergency martial law and the crimes of insurrection and foreign aggression, thus falling outside the scope of the investigation mandated by the Special Counsel Act on Insurrection.

Although the special counsel team immediately appealed the overall first-instance ruling, it decided after review to drop the appeal regarding the dismissed Graft Control Act charge.

The special counsel team explained, "If the special counsel's appeal against the dismissal is accepted, even the charge of playing a major role in an insurrection—for which a guilty verdict was handed down—would be remanded together, potentially delaying the proceedings. This is a judicial economy decision that comprehensively takes into account the legislative intent of the Special Counsel Act, which was enacted to ensure a swift trial for the insurrection case, and the proportion that the dismissed crime takes up in the defendant's overall offenses."

It added, "This does not mean that the lower court's legal judgment regarding the dismissal is justified," and noted, "We plan to transfer the portion for which the appeal was withdrawn to another agency so that a prompt indictment can be made."

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