Prosecutors have dropped all charges against current and former lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Korea suspected of receiving cash envelopes at the party's 2021 convention. The decision came three years after the investigation began, with prosecutors citing a court ruling on illegally obtained evidence despite finding circumstances suggesting the envelopes were indeed received.
According to legal sources on Tuesday, the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 (led by Chief Prosecutor Lee Sang-hyuk) of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in March cleared 10 individuals of charges including violations of the Political Parties Act and bribery. They include Democratic Party lawmakers Kim Young-ho, Min Byeong-deok, Park Sung-joon, Baek Hye-ryun, and Jeon Yong-gi; former Democratic Party lawmakers Park Young-soon, Kim Nam-kuk, Kim Seung-nam, and Lee Yong-bin; and Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Hwang Un-ha.
They were suspected of receiving cash envelopes containing 3 million won each from former lawmaker Yoon Kwan-seok on April 28-29, 2021, in exchange for supporting former party leader Song Young-gil, who was then a candidate for party chairman ahead of the Democratic Party convention. Prosecutors had requested their attendance multiple times, but final decisions were repeatedly delayed as they did not comply with summons, citing parliamentary duties.
While the investigation team confirmed circumstances indicating the recipients had received the money, the final decision to drop charges is interpreted as stemming from the court's ruling on illegally obtained evidence. Those implicated have been successively acquitted after the court ruled that mobile phone recording files belonging to Lee Jeong-geun, former Democratic Party deputy secretary-general and the central figure in the cash envelope allegations, had been illegally collected.
Prosecutors launched the cash envelope investigation in April 2023 and indicted former leader Song Young-gil in January 2024 with detention on charges including violations of the Political Parties Act. However, former lawmakers Yoon Kwan-seok, Lee Sung-man, and Lim Jong-seong, who had been sent to trial on charges of exchanging cash envelopes, had their convictions overturned on appeal after Lee's mobile phone recording files were recognized as illegally obtained evidence.
Song was subsequently acquitted in both the first and second trials, and his acquittal was finalized in February after prosecutors either abandoned or withdrew their appeal to the Supreme Court. However, former lawmaker Yoon received a final two-year prison sentence from the Supreme Court in October 2024 for receiving 60 million won from officials at Song's primary campaign for the purpose of preparing the cash envelopes.
