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Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung leaves the courthouse after being handed a conviction and one-year prison sentence for violating the Public Official Election Act on Nov. 15, 2024. (Kim Tae-hyoung/Hankyoreh)

Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung was handed a suspended one-year prison term on Friday for violating the country’s election law for public officials. If the conviction is upheld by higher courts, Lee could lose his National Assembly seat and be barred from running for elected office for 10 years. Yet this is not the only court case that threatens Lee’s political survival. 

The verdict of a case involving charges of suborning perjury will be announced on Nov. 25. That case was sent to court when allegations arose claiming that, after being under trial for election law violations in December 2018 for impersonating a prosecutor in 2002, Lee requested that Kim Jin-seong, the secretary to former Seongnam Mayor Kim Byung-ryang, provide false testimony.
 
Since the allegations concerning the Daejang and Baekhyeon neighborhood development projects and the Seongnam Football Club bribery case have been merged into one case, there are numerous witnesses and points to be considered by the court. As such, while the first trial began in May 2023, there has been little progress since. 
 
The Daejang neighborhood corruption scandal involves allegations that Lee, during his time as Seongnam mayor, caused the Seongnam Development Corporation 489.5 billion won in damages by approving a development project that favored private companies.
 
This case is linked to another case accusing Lee of providing preferential treatment, such as building permits, to four companies that provided 13.35 billion won in support funds while he was the owner of Seongnam FC, and a case accusing Lee of causing the Seongnam Development Corporation 20 billion won in damages by violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes through favoritism in the Baekhyeon neighborhood development project.
 
The case handled by the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office involves charges of Lee’s alleged involvement in transfers of funds to North Korea, claiming that the former SBW Group chairperson delivered to North Korea US$5 million in smart farm project funds and US$3 million in expenses for then-governor Lee’s visit to the North.

By Kim Ji-eun, staff reporter

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