The appeal trial for Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who was sentenced to lose his position due to allegations of funding polls through sponsors, has been scheduled.
According to legal sources on August 6, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 7, led by Judge Koo Hoe-geun, will hold the first hearing of Oh's appeal on August 21 at 2 p.m. Businessman Kim Han-jeong and former Seoul Deputy Mayor Kang Cheol-won, who face similar charges, will also appear in court on the same day.
Oh is accused of receiving poll results from political broker Myung Tae-kyun 10 times before the April 7, 2021, Seoul mayoral by-election and having Kim cover the 33 million won cost. He was indicted without detention in December of last year.
In a previous ruling, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 22, presided over by Judge Jo Hyung-woo, fined Oh 10 million won and ordered him to forfeit 21 million won on July 22. Kang received a fine of 3 million won, while Kim was fined 5 million won.
The court found that Oh had commissioned five of the ten polls listed in the indictment (three unpublished and two published) and that Kim had covered the 21 million won cost. However, it could not definitively conclude that Oh had commissioned or that Kim had covered the costs for the remaining five polls.
Under the Political Fund Law, if a conviction for receiving illegal political funds results in a fine of over 1 million won, the individual cannot assume or be appointed to a public office for five years. If a conviction is confirmed, Oh would have to resign from his position as mayor.
In response, Oh and all defendants, along with the special prosecutor team led by Kim Min-jung, have appealed the first ruling.
According to legal sources on August 6, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 7, led by Judge Koo Hoe-geun, will hold the first hearing of Oh's appeal on August 21 at 2 p.m. Businessman Kim Han-jeong and former Seoul Deputy Mayor Kang Cheol-won, who face similar charges, will also appear in court on the same day.
Oh is accused of receiving poll results from political broker Myung Tae-kyun 10 times before the April 7, 2021, Seoul mayoral by-election and having Kim cover the 33 million won cost. He was indicted without detention in December of last year.
In a previous ruling, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 22, presided over by Judge Jo Hyung-woo, fined Oh 10 million won and ordered him to forfeit 21 million won on July 22. Kang received a fine of 3 million won, while Kim was fined 5 million won.
The court found that Oh had commissioned five of the ten polls listed in the indictment (three unpublished and two published) and that Kim had covered the 21 million won cost. However, it could not definitively conclude that Oh had commissioned or that Kim had covered the costs for the remaining five polls.
Under the Political Fund Law, if a conviction for receiving illegal political funds results in a fine of over 1 million won, the individual cannot assume or be appointed to a public office for five years. If a conviction is confirmed, Oh would have to resign from his position as mayor.
In response, Oh and all defendants, along with the special prosecutor team led by Kim Min-jung, have appealed the first ruling.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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