Former Lawmaker Youngsun Kim Found Guilty of Political Funds Charges ... Acquitted of Industrial Complex Information Leak

Former lawmaker Youngsun Kim, who was indicted on charges including violations of the Political Funds Act, has been sentenced to imprisonment with a suspended sentence in the first trial.

The Criminal Division 2 of Changwon District Court in Gyeongnam (Judges Kim Sunghwan, Hong Jinguk, and Ko Yujeong) held the first-instance sentencing hearing on the 10th for Kim, her former accountant Kang Hyekyung, an influential businessman from Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, referred to as Mr. A, and Kim’s two biological younger siblings.

The court found Kim guilty of violating the Political Funds Act, sentencing her to one year in prison with a two-year suspended sentence, and ordered payment of a forfeiture of 40.5 million won.

Regarding the charge of failing to properly supervise accounting, the court found Kim partially guilty and imposed a fine of 1 million won.

Kim was found not guilty of charges including disclosure of official secrets, violations of the Conflict of Interest Prevention Act, and fraud.

Since the charge of disclosure of official secrets was not recognized, Kim’s two siblings were also acquitted of all charges.

As for Kang, the court recognized the charges of violating the Political Funds Act and making false entries in accounting records, sentencing her to total fines amounting to 9 million won.

Mr. A was sentenced to eight months in prison with an eighteen-month suspended sentence, for illegally providing political funds to Kim.

Former National Assembly member Youngsun Kim is responding to questions from reporters regarding the sentencing related to violations of the Political Funds Act in front of the courtroom building at Changwon District Court, Gyeongnam.
[Photo by Seryeong Lee]

According to the court, from September 2021 to October 2022, Kim received 40.5 million won in political funds from Mr. A in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, under the pretext of legal consulting services for his company.

Kim was also indicted for sharing specific information about a potential site for a new national industrial complex in Changwon with a real estate agent, identified as Mr. B, between January and March 2023. Kim’s two siblings then purchased land and buildings near the candidate site based on information they received from Mr. B.

In addition, Kim, conspiring with her office’s chief accountant Kang Hyekyung, was prosecuted for submitting false service fee applications and fabricated opinion poll reports to the National Assembly Secretariat in December 2023, fraudulently obtaining 20 million won in policy development expenses. Kim also stood trial for failing to properly supervise Kang’s accounting duties.

Kang faced charges for delivering a total of 80.7 million won in political funds exchanged between Kim and Taegyun Myung from August 2022 to November 2023 as a quid pro quo for the National Assembly nomination, as well as falsifying accounting books and failing to attach supporting documents.

The court stated, “Former lawmaker Kim entered into a legal consulting contract with Mr. A, who hoped his son would enter politics, thereby receiving political funds to finance her 21st National Assembly by-election campaign. After joining Yoon Suk Yeol’s 2021 presidential campaign and closing her law firm, she again used someone else’s name to receive political funds as consulting fees, which constitutes a violation.”

The ruling further explained, “Despite being a seasoned lawmaker and a licensed lawyer, fully aware of the intent and content of the Political Funds Act, Kim used her political influence and network to advise and introduce political figures to support Mr. A’s son’s political activities, and in return, received money from Mr. A.”

Regarding the supervision of accounting books, the court noted, “In January 2023, Kang failed to submit over 100 receipts related to the 2022 accounting report to the Election Commission of Uichang-gu and was warned. In 2023, she was investigated by the Election Commission for failing to provide documentation for 422 cases amounting to 126 million won. Kim was aware of these issues but did not monitor Kang’s work or replace her as chief accountant from 2023 onward.”

However, on the issue of national industrial complex candidate site information, the court explained the acquittal by stating, “The conversation between Kim and the real estate agent did not match the latest candidate site details, and Kim did not fully know the specifics when providing the information.”

The court also acquitted Kim of defrauding 20 million won in National Assembly policy development expenses, explaining that “the investigative agency applied recordings obtained from Kang during investigations into other charges to this case without a separate seizure warrant, rendering them illegally collected evidence that cannot be admitted.”

On the charges against Kang, the court said, “Kang played an active role as an intermediary, delivering money during the process of Kim providing parliamentary remuneration to Taegyun Myung in exchange for a nomination. She falsely recorded political fund ledgers, failed to keep required receipts, and, as accounting manager, breached her duties by using political funds for improper motives and making payments without reporting accounts.”

Regarding Mr. A, the court stated, “He committed the crime with the clear intent of donating political funds to Kim in the form of a legal consulting agreement, hoping it would help his son’s entry into politics. However, after Kim won the by-election, she notified Mr. A of the contract’s termination, and the transfer of political funds was interrupted for a period, which was taken into consideration.”

After the trial, Kim told reporters, “I am relieved some of the charges were acquitted. However, supporting someone else’s political activities in an unofficial capacity cannot be considered political activity itself.”

She added, “I was not involved in the matters that formed the premise of the court’s decision, and the overall circumstances unfolded due to Kang’s statements and activities, specifically those by Taegyun Myung. To judge my legal work as problematic solely based on the unrelated actions of Taegyun Myung is, in my view, a prejudiced ruling.”

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