The appeals trial of former President Yoon Suk-yeol on charges of publishing false information has pushed back its closing arguments to next month, after a witness testified in a way that conflicted with the indictment.
The Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 2-1, presided over by Judge Baek Seung-yeop, held a continued appellate hearing on the 29th for Yoon, who was indicted on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act, and postponed the closing session to Oct. 13.
The court had originally planned to wrap up arguments by questioning former chief prosecutor Yoon Dae-jin as a witness, then questioning Yoon as the defendant, followed by the final opinion and sentencing recommendation from special counsel Min Joong-ki's team and closing arguments by the defense.
But the schedule slipped as the witness examination ran longer than expected, with Yoon Dae-jin testifying to a version of events that differed from the indictment. He testified that he was the one who referred a lawyer surnamed Lee, a former Supreme Prosecutors' Office official, to Yoon Woo-jin, former head of the Yongsan District Tax Office.
"My brother was under investigation at the time and was having a hard time. It was not appropriate for me to advise him, so I gave attorney Lee my brother's phone number, in the sense that I hoped he would provide legal advice," Yoon Dae-jin said.
In a 2012 interview, the former president had said he was the one who referred attorney Lee to the former tax office head. He later reversed that account during the 2021 presidential campaign.
Yoon spoke directly in court on the 29th, explaining that his remarks in the 2012 interview had been a step taken to protect Yoon Dae-jin. "I was concerned about the possibility that he would suffer disadvantages in personnel decisions," Yoon said. "Because my name came up on his mobile phone, I was trying to keep a junior colleague from becoming the subject of gossip."
The court concluded it would be better to prepare for the final defendant questioning and arguments by taking into account the content of the day's witness examination, rather than closing the proceedings hastily. The court is expected to conclude arguments on Oct. 13 after additional examination of evidence and questioning of the defendant.
Yoon was indicted on charges of publishing false information on Dec. 14, 2021, during the 20th presidential election campaign, when he said at a Kwanhun Club debate that he had never referred a lawyer to Yoon Woo-jin, the older brother of Yoon Dae-jin.
He also faces charges of publishing false information in a Jan. 17 interview the following year, at the launch of the Buddhist Leaders Forum, when he said of shaman Jeon Seong-bae, known as Geonjin Beopsa, that he had been introduced to him by a party official but had never met him together with Kim Keon-hee.
In July, the trial court found all of those statements to constitute crimes and sentenced Yoon to one year and six months in prison, suspended for three years.
If Yoon's conviction on these charges is finalized with a fine of 1 million won or more, the People Power Party will have to return the election expenses it was reimbursed by the National Election Commission. The party received about 39.7 billion won in reimbursed election expenses for the 20th presidential election.
