DPK: Lee Hwa-young Found Guilty in First Trial Over "Salmon Drinking Party," But Substance Is Not Guilty

The Democratic Party of Korea argued that, although the court found Lee Hwa-young, former Vice Governor for Peace of Gyeonggi Province, guilty regarding the "salmon drinking party" allegations, the substance of the case actually amounts to innocence, saying, "While the result is a guilty verdict, in substance, it is a not guilty verdict."

Their reasoning is that, although the first trial court delivered a guilty verdict based on a 4 to 3 jury decision regarding whether alcohol was served, three jurors found Lee not guilty. Therefore, they believe the verdict could be overturned on appeal.

Democratic Party lawmakers who served on the Special Committee for the National Assembly’s Investigation into Allegations of Political Prosecution and Fabricated Indictments during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration made this statement during a press conference at the National Assembly on this day.

They stated, "Jury members reached a guilty verdict by a 4 to 3 margin on whether alcohol was served, and the court respected this result and handed down a guilty verdict," adding, "Since three jurors rendered not guilty opinions, the substance of the case is not guilty, and we expect that the appellate court will deliver a full acquittal."

They went on to say, "Not guilty verdicts and dismissals of charges were delivered for the key allegations in this ruling," and emphasized, "The prosecution must reflect on the fabricated indictments carried out during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration and take measures to correct these wrongdoings."

The statement was issued in the name of all Democratic Party lawmakers who served on the special committee, but only lawmakers Seo Youngkyo, Lee Geontae, and Lee Yongwoo attended the press conference.

Previously, the 11th Criminal Division of Suwon District Court (Chief Judge Song Byung-hoon) sentenced former Vice Governor Lee to four months in prison on the charge of perjury (violation of the Act on Testimony and Appraisal Before the National Assembly) for making false statements about the "salmon drinking party" allegations during the sentencing trial by jury held the previous day.

The court found Lee not guilty of conspiring with Kim Sung-tae, former Chairman of Ssangbangwool, in the "split donations" allegations (violation of the Political Funds Act), and dismissed the charge of abuse of authority related to North Korea aid.

Yonhap News Agency

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.