ID :
212557
Thu, 10/13/2011 - 11:03
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/212557
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Supreme Court asks for retrial in high-profile lobbying scandal
SEOUL, Oct. 13 (Yonhap) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday once again partially annulled a lower court's ruling on a high-profile lobbying scandal involving a Busan-based businessman, sending the decision back for reconsideration nine months after it ordered a retrial of the case that prompted the suicide of late President Roh Moo-hyun.
The Seoul High Court in June sentenced Park Yeon-cha, former chairman of Taekwang Industrial Co., which mainly focused on shoemaking, to two and half years in prison, along with a fine of 19 billion won (US$16.5 million).
Park was prosecuted in 2008 on charges of bribing a handful of politicians, some of whom were close aides to Roh, and evading about 28.6 billion won in income tax.
He was also charged with greasing the hand of a former head of the national agricultural cooperative in order to gain favor in taking over the cooperative's chemicals-making affiliate.
But the top court returned the case to the high court, asking it to reconsider the whole decision, except for the part that cleared Park of bribing a former deputy Seoul mayor in return for favors while he was president of a monthly news magazine in February 2007.
It marked the second time that the Supreme Court has annulled the high court's verdict on the case. In January, the court annulled the high court's earlier sentence of a two-and-half-year prison term and a fine of 30 billion won, saying the amount of evaded taxes the court based its decision on was too high.
Prosecutors' opening of an investigation into Roh's family, including his wife and elder brother, in 2009 on suspicions of taking bribes from the businessman severely tarnished Roh's image as a clean president, triggering him to take his own life by jumping off a cliff behind his retirement home in Gimhae in southeastern Korea.
Lee Kwang-jae, the former governor of Gangwon Province, lost the governorship after being convicted of taking illegal political funds from businessmen, including Park, earlier this year.
The Seoul High Court in June sentenced Park Yeon-cha, former chairman of Taekwang Industrial Co., which mainly focused on shoemaking, to two and half years in prison, along with a fine of 19 billion won (US$16.5 million).
Park was prosecuted in 2008 on charges of bribing a handful of politicians, some of whom were close aides to Roh, and evading about 28.6 billion won in income tax.
He was also charged with greasing the hand of a former head of the national agricultural cooperative in order to gain favor in taking over the cooperative's chemicals-making affiliate.
But the top court returned the case to the high court, asking it to reconsider the whole decision, except for the part that cleared Park of bribing a former deputy Seoul mayor in return for favors while he was president of a monthly news magazine in February 2007.
It marked the second time that the Supreme Court has annulled the high court's verdict on the case. In January, the court annulled the high court's earlier sentence of a two-and-half-year prison term and a fine of 30 billion won, saying the amount of evaded taxes the court based its decision on was too high.
Prosecutors' opening of an investigation into Roh's family, including his wife and elder brother, in 2009 on suspicions of taking bribes from the businessman severely tarnished Roh's image as a clean president, triggering him to take his own life by jumping off a cliff behind his retirement home in Gimhae in southeastern Korea.
Lee Kwang-jae, the former governor of Gangwon Province, lost the governorship after being convicted of taking illegal political funds from businessmen, including Park, earlier this year.
