Kim Seong-tae fined for $8 million payment to N. Korea

Former Ssangbangwool Chairman Kim Seong-tae (pictured), indicted on charges of paying $8 million to North Korea, including costs for Lee Jae-myung's visit to North Korea when Lee was governor of Gyeonggi Province, has been sentenced to prison in the first trial.

On Friday, Suwon District Court Criminal Division 11 sentenced former chairman Kim to two years and six months in prison for violating the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act and giving bribes and to one year in prison and two years probation for violating the Political Fund Act.

Regarding former Chairman Kim's charge of sending money to North Korea, the court stated, "For the sake of his personal relationship with an influential politician (Lee Hwa-young, former deputy governor of peace in Gyeonggi Province), he implemented inter-Korean exchange and cooperation projects without the approval of the Minister of Unification, thereby destroying the order of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation projects." The court added, "He recklessly paid a large amount of money to North Korea in a fraudulent manner." Regarding the charge of violating the Political Funds Act, the court remarked, "The legislative purpose of the Political Funds Act was also seriously damaged by the defendant’s crime." However, no court arrest was made, as the court took into account that former Chairman Kim generally acknowledged the facts and committed the crime at the request of former Deputy Governor Lee.

Former Chairman Kim was arrested and indicted in February last year on charges of paying North Korea $5 million for a North Korean smart farm support project in Gyeonggi Province in 2019 and $3 million for former party chief Lee's visit to North Korea. Kim is also accused of giving a total of 334 million won in political funds and bribes by providing corporate cards and vehicles to former Deputy Governor Lee from July 2018 to July 2022 and giving false salaries to his associates. Former Deputy Governor Lee, indicted in the same case, was sentenced to nine years and six months in prison on June 7 and is appealing.

The ruling is expected to impact the trial of former party chief Lee, who was indicted on charges of third-party bribery related to Ssangbangwool remittances to North Korea. The case of former party chief Lee is also being heard by the 11th Criminal Division of the Suwon District Court, as the court acknowledged the charges against former Deputy Governor Lee and former chairman Kim. Former party chief Lee has submitted an application for a combined hearing to the Supreme Court, requesting that his remittance to North Korea case be tried at the Seoul Central District Court, which is hearing cases such as the Daejangdong suspicion. On Thursday, the prosecution submitted a written opinion stating that merging the two cases was impossible because the issues and the speed of hearing were different.


송유근 기자 big@donga.com