Court hands down first sentence in property development scandal involving Democratic Party leader

Social Affairs

Published: 13 Feb. 2024, 18:59 Updated: 14 Feb. 2024, 13:39

Court hands down first sentence in property development scandal involving Democratic Party leader

Kim In-seop, lobbyist of Baekhyeon-dong development project, involving Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, enters the court in Seocho-dong, Seoul, on Tuesday. Kim was sentenced to five years in prison. [YONHAP]

The court issued its first ruling on one of the property development projects involving Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday.

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Kim In-seop to five years in prison and imposed a restitution of 6.35 billion won ($4.8 millon) for lobbying the Baekhyeon-dong development project.

Kim, who had been out on bail since October, was immediately sent to prison as the court cited flight risk.

"Without specific expertise or knowhow, the defendant actively lobbied for numerous approvals by the local government using his connections to regional politicians and Seongnam city workers," the judge said.

"For his services, he received 7 billion won, an amount that defies common sense."

The judge concluded that Kim's offense is exceptionally grave.

Kim, who previously operated a restaurant in Seongnam, was indicted last year for receiving 7.7 billion won from the private developer Chung Ba-ul, the CEO of Asia Developer, in exchange for arranging development permits from the Seongnam city government in 2015.

The prosecution argued that through the numerous favors that Kim arranged using his connections with the Seongnam city government, including then Mayor Lee Jae-myung, the private developer was able to profit 300 billion won.

Local media reported that the DP chief Lee and his close aides, including Jeong Jin-sang, were frequent customers of Kim’s restaurant.

Kim also worked at Lee’s election camp as part of the team in charge of fundraising.

The DP chairman, Lee, has been on trial for his involvement in the Baekhyeon-dong development project since November last year.

Lee faces indictment on charges of breach of trust, as the prosecution argues that he abused his authority as Seongnam mayor, a position he held from 2010 to 2018, by granting special favors to the private developer involved in the project.

The favors Lee is accused of granting include significant relaxation of zoning regulations, approval for the construction of a 50-meter tall retainer wall, and a significant reduction in the number of mandatory rental apartments for lower-income households.

The prosecution has argued that such favors only served to increase the profit of the private developer.

By excluding the city-owned Seongnam Development Corp. from the project, Lee's actions resulted in a minimum loss of 20 billion won for the city.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]