Oh Se-hoon, the mayor of Seoul, who was previously fined for violating election finance laws, continued to deny the allegations during his appeal hearing.
In the first session of the appeal held on August 21 at the Seoul High Court, Oh's legal team argued, "The defendant (Oh Se-hoon) has never commissioned Mr. Myung Tae-kyun for a survey, nor has he requested payment from his supporter, Kim Han-jung." Before entering the courtroom, Oh stated to reporters, "I will definitely prove my innocence and reveal the truth."
Throughout the trial, Oh's defense maintained that he had no involvement in commissioning the surveys or in any payments.
Oh's attorney claimed that while Oh had met Myung in the past, he deemed him untrustworthy and distanced himself. They also noted that former Seoul Deputy Mayor Kang Cheol-won, a close aide to Oh, had a significant dispute with Myung, leading to the end of their relationship.
Regarding the controversial payment of 33 million won, Oh's team argued it was solely the independent decision of businessman Kim Han-jung, who allegedly provided the money to manage and appease Myung without Oh or Kang's knowledge.
Additionally, Oh's legal representatives criticized the first trial's verdict as unjust, asserting that the court had drawn unreasonable conclusions from insufficient evidence regarding the meetings with Myung, the surveys related to Oh, and Kim's financial contributions.
In contrast, the special prosecutor's team, which brought the case against Oh, argued that the evidence, including the process of conducting the surveys, seized phone records, and indications that Myung manipulated the surveys to benefit them, sufficiently proved the charges.
The special prosecutor emphasized, "It is clear that Oh conspired with former Deputy Mayor Kang to commission a total of 10 surveys from Myung, and that Kim paid 33 million won on their behalf." They also pointed out that the first trial's acknowledgment of guilt for only five of the ten surveys was a misinterpretation of the facts and legal principles. They requested the court to overturn the first trial's partial acquittal and impose a sentence of 18 months in prison, the same as originally sought.
During the hearing, the court accepted six key witnesses, including former People Power Party emergency committee chairman Kim Jong-in, whom Oh's team identified as the actual party that commissioned the surveys. Testimony from Kim is scheduled for September 11.
After hearing from both sides, the court set the next hearing for August 28 and indicated that it would expedite the remaining procedures, aiming to deliver a ruling by around October 23.
Previously, Oh was indicted without detention in December for allegedly receiving survey results from Myung ten times before the April 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election and having Kim cover the 33 million won cost.
The first trial court found him guilty of five counts of survey commissioning and the payment of 21 million won, imposing a fine of 10 million won and a forfeiture of 21 million won. Kang and Kim, who were also indicted, received fines of 3 million won and 5 million won, respectively.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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