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Former presidential aides handed suspended sentences for conspiring to manipulate political opinion

Published: 26 Jan. 2026, 12:19 Updated: 26 Jan. 2026, 19:31

The Supreme Court building in Seocho District, southern Seoul, is seen on Sept. 25, 2025. [YONHAP]

The Supreme Court has finalized suspended prison terms for two former presidential aides under the Lee Myung-bak administration for directing a military unit to manipulate political opinion online, almost seven years after the case was brought to trial.

The top court on Dec. 11 last year upheld lower court rulings that sentenced Kim Cheol-gyun, a former Blue House secretary, to one year in prison suspended for two years and Lee Ki-young, another former secretary, to one year and six months in prison suspended for three years, according to legal insiders on Monday.

The ruling came six years and eight months after prosecutors filed indictments on the case in April 2019.

Prosecutors said the two men conspired with Bae Deuk-sik, then commander of the Defense Security Command, between July 2011 and February 2013 during the Lee Myung-bak administration. They ordered members of an internal comment-posting unit known as “Sparta” to pose as ordinary citizens and post politically motivated content online.

Investigators said the group repeatedly posted messages on social media platforms such as Twitter, now known as X, defending the former president and the government. Members also published and distributed web magazines containing political opinions while disguising them as materials produced by civilian organizations.

The trial court said the Constitution’s emphasis on the political neutrality of the military reflected historical lessons from past military intervention in politics and an effort to prevent political forces from exploiting military influence.

“The Constitution’s strong emphasis on the political neutrality of the military reflects a determination never to repeat military involvement in politics,” the court said. “The defendants requested activities that seriously undermined the military’s duty of political neutrality.”

The court said the acts appeared aimed at securing a renewed term in power and caused serious damage to public trust in the government and the armed forces.

“The crimes betrayed the public’s expectations and trust in the government and the military,” the court said, adding that they likely undermined “the healthy and free formation of public opinion.”

However, the court acquitted Lee Ki-young of charges related to ordering the preparation of daily online search reports. It also acquitted Kim of charges related to directing the transcription and distribution of recordings from the political podcast “Naneun Ggomsuda" (2011-12)

An appellate court later dismissed the defendants’ appeals.

Bae, the former Defense Security Command chief, received a final sentence of three years in prison in December 2022.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM BO-REUM [[email protected]]