Kim Seong-tae's Appeal Trial Begins Amid Corruption Charges

The appeal trial for Kim Seong-tae, the former chairman of the Ssangbangwool Group, commenced on January 14, 2025, at the Suwon High Court. Kim was previously sentenced to three years and six months in prison for illegally transferring $8 million to North Korea and for bribing Lee Hwa-young, the former Vice Governor of Gyeonggi Province, with millions in illicit funds.

During the first session of the appeal, presided over by Judge Kim Jong-woo, Kim's defense attorney acknowledged the facts of the case but stated that they had not yet completed a thorough review of the case records due to their recent appointment. The attorney indicated that they would submit necessary sentencing materials and potentially call for witnesses after reviewing the documents.

The prosecution announced plans to present additional evidence, including the appeal ruling for Lee Hwa-young, who was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison for his involvement in the same case. The trial lasted only 26 minutes, primarily focusing on scheduling future proceedings.

From July 2018 to July 2022, Kim allegedly provided corporate credit cards and vehicles from the Ssangbangwool Group to Lee and funneled approximately 334 million won in political funds and bribes, including 259 million won in bribes, to Lee's associates.

Additionally, Kim is accused of transferring $5 million for a smart farm project and $3 million for Lee's travel expenses to North Korea, violating foreign exchange and inter-Korean cooperation laws. He was arrested and indicted in January 2023 but was released on bail in January 2024.

The first trial found Kim guilty of illegal remittances to North Korea and bribery, resulting in a sentence of three years and six months. The court also imposed a one-year prison term with a two-year suspension for violating political funding laws, while the remaining charges led to a two-year and six-month sentence. The court did not impose immediate detention, citing no risk of evidence destruction and Kim's cooperative attitude during the trial.

The court confirmed that Kim had transferred a total of $800,000 to North Korea at Lee's request, including $394,000 that was unlawfully diverted for payment purposes, violating foreign exchange laws. Furthermore, it ruled that Kim had provided Lee with 218 million won in political funds, of which 107 million won was classified as a bribe.

Kim is also facing additional charges related to third-party bribery in connection with the North Korean remittance case and is undergoing separate trials for allegedly bribing Lee with 30 million won for a police officer's promotion, embezzling 53.8 billion won through five shell companies, and improperly supporting group affiliates with approximately 1.1 billion won.