The ruling by the Seoul Central District Court came after Oh was indicted in December last year on charges of receiving about a dozen opinion polls from self-proclaimed political broker Myung Tae-kyun ahead of the April 7, 2021 election and having his supporter and businessman Kim Han-jung pay about 33 million won to Myung for the polls on his behalf.
The court handed down fines of 5 million won for Kim and 3 million won for Kang Chul-won, a former deputy mayor, in connection with the allegations.
But Oh denied the allegations, arguing that he had already severed ties with Myung by around February 2021 and that Kim had paid Myung voluntarily without his knowledge, either to cover part of the polling costs or for personal reasons.
But the court rejected his claims, finding that Oh had sufficient motive to commission the polls and that Kim would have had no reason to make the payments without Oh's request, as Kim appeared to have no direct relationship with either Myung or Kang.
Immediately after the ruling, Oh said he would appeal, saying, "I cannot accept the ruling. I will challenge it in the appellate court."
Prosecutors had earlier sought a prison term of one year and six months for Oh, along with the forfeiture of the 33 million won allegedly provided as illegal political funds.
If upheld by a higher court, the ruling would cost Oh his post and bar him from running for elected office for five years, making him ineligible to run in the 2030 presidential election.
Under relevant laws in South Korea, public officials who receive a fine of 1 million won or more are disqualified from public service.
Oh had been considered one of the strong contenders for the 2030 presidential election from the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) after winning a fifth term as Seoul mayor in last June's local elections.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.