The Supreme Court confirmed the acquittal of Son Jun-sung, Vice Administrator of the Daegu High Prosecutors’ Office, who was indicted for the so-called 'allegation of the prosecution's collusion.'
On the 24th, the Supreme Court's 1st Division, presided over by Justice Roh Kyung-pil, finalized the second trial that acquitted Son, who was indicted for violating the Public Official Election Act. This comes about three years after the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) investigated and indicted the case in May 2022.
The allegation of the prosecution's collusion claims that former President Yoon Suk-yeol, during his tenure as Prosecutor General, instructed the People Power Party to file a complaint against individuals such as Yoo Si-min and Choi Kang-wook, a former member of the Democratic Party of Korea, for defaming him and his wife ahead of the April 15, 2020, general election. Son was indicted on charges of conveying two complaints against figures from the ruling party to Kim Woong, a former lawmaker who was a candidate for the People Power Party at the time, via Telegram.
The crux of the trial was whether Son directly communicated the complaints to the former lawmaker. The first trial acknowledged this and found him guilty of some charges, including breach of public duty and disclosure of confidential information, but the second trial reversed the ruling, suggesting that a 'third party' could be involved.
The second trial court stated, 'It is acknowledged that Son was involved in gathering and drafting information related to the complaints,' but added, 'If the complaint was sent to a third party, and that third party delivered it to the former lawmaker, the label 'sent by Son Jun-sung' appears. There is no direct or indirect evidence proving that Son sent the complaint himself.'
The Supreme Court stated, 'There were no errors that influenced the judgment regarding the legal principles related to the Public Official Election Act's 'acts influencing the election.'