Lee Man-hee, the leader of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, will face his first trial on July 24, charged with directing members to join a specific political party.
According to legal sources on July 7, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 1, presided over by Judge Lee Chun-geun, will conduct the initial hearing at 9:50 a.m. on charges of violating party law and obstructing business.
Lee is accused of mobilizing church leaders to forcibly enroll over 50,000 members into the People Power Party since 2021.
The joint investigation team, led by Chief Prosecutor Kim Tae-hoon, found that Shincheonji operated a project disguised as a Pilates club in 2023 to encourage organized party membership against the will of its members, which they determined obstructed the normal management and review processes of the political party.
As a result, the investigation team deemed the evidence sufficient and requested an arrest warrant for Lee on June 22, which the court granted. Following this, Lee applied for a review of his detention due to his age, but the court rejected the request. Considering the approaching statute of limitations for election-related charges, the team indicted Lee while he remained in custody on June 29.
In conjunction with Lee's trial, actions against key Shincheonji leaders who facilitated the organized membership drive are imminent. The investigation team plans to indict three individuals, including former General Secretary Go Dong-an and former secretaries of the Johan and Simon factions, on charges of violating party law. They were already detained on June 17.
A critical aspect of the investigation is whether the indictments will include allegations of political lobbying. The team has been investigating Go's embezzlement of hundreds of millions of won, suspecting that these funds may have flowed into political circles. Go also served as the head of foreign policy, responsible for recruiting politicians during the 20th presidential election.
The investigation team is reportedly scrutinizing not only the accounts of Go and his associates but also financial transactions with Lee Hee-ja, suspected of acting as a bridge between Shincheonji and political circles.
However, it has been reported that there is no clear evidence confirming whether the substantial funds generated during the COVID-19 pandemic were actually delivered to political figures.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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