Why Did the Court Rule This Way? "Myeong Tae-gyun Gave Statements Out of Resentment"

[Anchor]

The "words" of Myeong Tae-gyun, which previously led to a guilty verdict against Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon in the first trial, served as the core basis for bringing about the exact opposite result in the second trial. The court ruled that Myeong's statements lacked credibility, citing points such as him showing resentment toward Mayor Oh after failing to receive recognition for his contributions.

Reporting continues with reporter Kim Deok-hyeon.

[Reporter]

Regarding the suspicion of "having poll costs covered," Myeong Tae-gyun has consistently claimed that the person who commissioned the surveys was Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon.

[Myeong Tae-gyun (April of last year): I came all the way from Changwon to Seoul to catch Oh Se-hoon.]

[Myeong Tae-gyun (November of last year): Someone must have given instructions, and someone must have connected us. That is Oh Se-hoon.]

Myeong's statements and court testimonies were the only direct evidence regarding whether Mayor Oh actually commissioned the opinion polls and directed a sponsor to cover the costs, but the appellate court judged them to lack credibility.

The court determined that Myeong's statements were inconsistent and conflicted with objective circumstances or statements from those around him.

The court did not accept Myeong's claim that Mayor Oh "called while crying" when initially commissioning the opinion polls.

[Goo Hoe-keun / Presiding Judge, Criminal Division 7, Seoul High Court: It is difficult to accept as common sense that [Mayor Oh], without any information, would mention even the issue of illegal cost burdens and commission opinion polls while crying...]

The court also took into consideration the fact that Myeong, who initially did not testify about charges related to Mayor Oh, publicly stated after Mayor Oh hinted at filing a complaint that people should watch how he weaves things together.

The court pointed out that it is also lacking in common sense for Mayor Oh to have directly and openly commissioned a sponsor to cover illegal costs and for this process to have been carried out via bank transfers.

The court stated there is suspicion that Myeong conducted opinion polls on his own initiative without Mayor Oh's commission in order to flaunt his political capabilities to the leadership of the People Power Party at the time.

The court concluded that while there are suspicions of guilt—such as Myeong meeting Mayor Oh and poll results being shared—if the proof of charges is insufficient, decisions must be made in favor of the defendant.

(Camera footage by Kim Se-kyung | Video editing by Lee Hong-myeong | Design by Kang Yoon-jung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.