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피터빈트

Court set for final ruling on ex-spy chief over election-meddling

By Yonhap

Published : Aug. 30, 2017 - 10:38

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A Seoul court was to deliver its verdict Wednesday on a former state intelligence agency chief on trial for alleged interference in the 2012 presidential election.

Won Sei-hoon, ex-director of the National Intelligence Agency, was indicted in 2013 for running an illicit smear campaign to sway voters in favor of then presidential candidate Park Geun-hye from the conservative bloc. She won the election against her rival Moon Jae-in by a thin margin.

The 66-year-old defendant headed the NIS from 2009 to 2013 under the conservative Lee Myung-bak administration.

The Seoul Central District Court gave him a suspended sentence, finding him only guilty of interfering in politics in violation of the NIS law, and innocent of the election-meddling charge. But the appeals court ruled he was guilty of all charges and sentenced him to three years. 


(Yonhap) (Yonhap)

In July 2015, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the lower court for retrial, saying that the email files submitted as key evidence are not valid since the prosecution failed to specify who wrote them. The top court's decision got Won released on bail.

The highly charged case took a fresh twist early this month as an internal NIS probe revealed new evidence that can possibly further incriminate Won.

The evidence, based on which the prosecution has reopened an investigation into the scandal, alleged that Won orchestrated the secret operation of some 30 "cyber teams," consisting of civilians, to post Internet comments in support of Park in the runup to the election.

The Seoul High Court, however, turned down the prosecution's request to postpone the sentencing for Won, saying that there is little reason to reopen the proceedings considering the extent to which the trial has progressed. (Yonhap)

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