Suhong Park's Sister-in-Law Appeals 12 Million Won Fine for Spreading 'Cohabitation Rumors'... Case Heads to Supreme Court

Sister-in-law of Suhong Park Claims "No Malicious Intent"


Court Upholds First Trial's Ruling Despite Plea for Leniency

Lee Mo (54), the sister-in-law of broadcaster Suhong Park, who was fined for spreading false information about Park, has filed an appeal.

Broadcaster Suhong Park. Yonhap News.

According to Yonhap News on the 27th, Lee's legal team submitted a notice of appeal to the Seoul Western District Court on this day.

Earlier, on the 23rd, the court sentenced Lee to a fine of 12 million won at the appellate trial, the same as in the first trial, for defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act. Lee was accused of sending messages containing false claims, such as Suhong Park cohabiting with a woman while appearing on TV, in a KakaoTalk group chat. She was also charged with defaming Park by accusing him of lying that his older brother and sister-in-law had embezzled his money.

The court found that Lee had sent KakaoTalk messages containing false information related to Suhong Park's private life to acquaintances. In particular, the court highlighted that Lee described witnessing the woman at Park’s home, even though she had never actually seen her there.

The court stated, “The defendant sent messages such as 'It seems he's with a woman,' as if she had witnessed it herself, even though she never saw the woman at the victim’s house,” and added, “This constitutes the dissemination of false information.”

Lee’s side argued that her actions were a defensive response to explain her sense of unfairness, not done with malicious intent, and appealed for leniency, calling them “foolish and shameful acts.” In her final statement, she apologized to Suhong Park and Kim Da-ye for causing them pain, saying, “I deeply regret my actions and promise this will never happen again. I will strive to be a mother my children are not ashamed of.”

However, the court still imposed the same fine of 12 million won as the first trial. The court also rejected the assertion by Lee’s side that the messages were merely private conversations exchanged among acquaintances.

Lee was previously found guilty and received a suspended sentence of 1 year and 6 months in prison with 2 years' probation from the Supreme Court this past February for using 26 million won from Park’s agency’s corporate credit card for personal purposes, a violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (Embezzlement).

Meanwhile, the legal battle surrounding Suhong Park’s family has not yet concluded. His elder brother, Park Mo, indicted for embezzling agency funds and Park’s appearance fees, was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison by the Supreme Court in February. Separately, a damages lawsuit filed by Suhong Park against his older brother and sister-in-law, seeking about 9.8 billion won, is ongoing. The verdict in this civil case is scheduled to be delivered at the Seoul Western District Court on September 11.

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