DP’s think tank chief found guilty

[Anchor]

Jeon Jun-kyung, the former deputy director of the Institute for Democracy, who was indicted on charges of receiving bribes worth 800 million won related to permits and civil complaints, has been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison in the first trial and was taken into custody.

Although Jeon claimed that he received the money as consulting fees, the court did not accept this argument.

Reporter Shin Hyun-wook reports.

[Report]

Jeon Jun-kyung, the former Deputy Director of the Institute for Democracy, served as a non-standing member of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission.

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Jeon to 2 years and 6 months in prison for charges of bribery and receiving kickbacks.

The court also imposed a fine of 52 million won and took Jeon into custody.

Jeon is accused of receiving over 780 million won from seven companies from 2015 to last year under the pretext of handling civil complaints for the Anti-Corruption Commission or facilitating local government permits.

In 2017, he is also accused of receiving 26 million won in bribes from a hot spring development company for providing assistance related to civil complaints at the commission.

Jeon admitted to receiving the money but claimed that it was not related to his official duties.

He argued that he provided legitimate consulting services through a consulting contract and received compensation for it.

However, the court did not accept Jeon's claims.

The court determined that Jeon actively facilitated various civil complaints and permit matters by leveraging personal connections formed during his official duties.

It viewed the consulting contract as merely a formal pretext.

However, the court noted that there were no illegal acts resulting from the facilitation and considered that some of the individuals who provided the money stated that they did so out of gratitude.

This is KBS News Shin Hyun-wook.