The Seoul High Court during appeal hearings on Friday reduced the sentence of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye from the 30 years sought by public prosecutors to 20 years in jail on two counts in a corruption case, media reported
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th July, 2020) The Seoul High Court during appeal hearings on Friday reduced the sentence of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye from the 30 years sought by public prosecutors to 20 years in jail on two counts in a corruption case, media reported.
Park was dislodged in 2017 due to a political scandal involving her friend, Choi Soon-sil, who was accused of interfering in South Korean politics by influencing Park's decisions. The ex-president was also charged with accepting bribes worth 3.5 billion won ($2.9 million) from three former chiefs of the National Intelligence Service from 2013-2016 and sentenced to a prison term in 2018. However, the South Korean Supreme Court insisted on a retrial, citing the Public Official Election Law. It envisages that corruption charges against a public official should be ruled individually, as a bribery conviction could later affect the right to vote or participate in elections.
The Yonhap news agency said that the Seoul High Court ruled to sentence the former president to 15 years in jail for bribery and to five years for abuse of power and other charges. Park will also have to pay 18 billion won as a fine and forfeit 3.5 billion won. Previously, Park had a combined 30-year prison term and had to pay 20 billion won in fines and forfeit 2.7 billion won, per rulings in 2018 and 2019.
