Park Soo-hong, a broadcaster, has had his older brother, Mr. Park, sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison for embezzling tens of billions of won from his appearance fees and management profits. The long-standing legal dispute between the brothers has come to an end with the Supreme Court's ruling.
On the 26th, the Supreme Court's 1st Division confirmed the original ruling that sentenced Mr. Park to 3 years and 6 months in prison for violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement). His sister-in-law, Ms. Lee, who was also implicated in the crime, received a guilty verdict with a sentence of 1 year in prison and 2 years of probation.
Mr. Park was indicted in 2022 for embezzling company funds and personal money while managing his younger brother Park Soo-hong from 2011 to 2021. The first trial court recognized only part of the embezzlement of company funds as guilty and sentenced him to 2 years in prison, while acquitting his sister-in-law, Ms. Lee. However, the second trial's judgment was different.
The appellate court severely criticized Mr. Park for "betraying trust by taking advantage of the family business". The second trial increased the sentence to 3 years and 6 months in prison and ordered his immediate detention. The court explained that "the act of exploiting the trust of the victim, his younger brother, constitutes a special aggravating factor." The court also recognized the charges against sister-in-law Ms. Lee for personal use of corporate credit cards as guilty, despite her acquittal in the first trial.
Mr. Park's side appealed, claiming the sentence was too harsh, but the Supreme Court rejected this. The Supreme Court stated, "There is no legal misunderstanding or improper sentencing in the original ruling," and dismissed the appeal. Thus, the legal battle over embezzlement between Park Soo-hong and his older brother and sister-in-law has come to a close with their guilty verdicts confirmed.
