Prosecutors have asked a court to sentence independent lawmaker Kang Sun-woo to four years in prison on charges of accepting 100 million won ($72,000) in exchange for a Seoul city council nomination.
At the final hearing on the 16th at the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Senior Judge Lee Chun-keun of the criminal single-judge division, prosecutors requested four years in prison and forfeiture of 100 million won in the case, which involves alleged violations of the Political Funds Act.
Prosecutors said the case "damaged public trust by turning the nomination of a candidate for public office into a large cash transaction," adding that "when money enters party nominations, fairness is undermined and voters bear the cost." They also said Kang "has taken the position of shifting all responsibility onto the former aide and the former city councilor," stressing the need for strict accountability.
Prosecutors sought a two-year prison term for Kim Kyung, a former Seoul city councilor indicted alongside Kang on charges of handing over the 100 million won, and one year for Nam, a former aide to Kang who allegedly arranged the meeting between the two.
According to prosecutors, Kang and Kim met at a hotel in Seoul's Yongsan district in January 2022, ahead of local elections, and exchanged a shopping bag containing 100 million won in return for the nomination. Both were indicted and detained in March. Kim, then running in Kang's constituency of Gangseo district in Seoul, received the Democratic Party of Korea's sole nomination as its Seoul city council candidate and won the seat. Kang was a member of the Democratic Party at the time.
Kim and Nam admitted in court to exchanging the money, while Kang has denied the charges outright.
