The Supreme Court will hand down its final ruling on the 26th on a married couple—an older brother, a person surnamed Park, and a sister-in-law, a person surnamed Lee—accused of embezzling tens of billions of won, including funds from broadcaster Park Soo-hong's management agency.
At 10:15 a.m. that day, the Supreme Court will hold a sentencing hearing for Park Soo-hong's older brother and his wife, who were indicted on charges including embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes.
They were indicted in Oct. 2022 on charges of siphoning off Park Soo-hong's personal funds and company money while running an entertainment agency for 10 years starting in 2011.
In the first trial, the court sentenced the older brother, a person surnamed Park, to two years in prison and acquitted the sister-in-law, a person surnamed Lee. The first trial panel found him guilty of embezzling 2 billion won in company funds belonging to Park Soo-hong, but ruled not guilty on the charge of misappropriating 1.6 billion won of Park's money.
In the second trial, the court sentenced the older brother, a person surnamed Park, to three years and six months in prison and took him into custody in the courtroom. It recognized the sister-in-law, a person surnamed Lee, for occupational breach of trust, sentencing her to one year and six months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordering 120 hours of community service.
The second trial panel said, "Park Soo-hong is petitioning for a heavy punishment," and explained the reason for increasing the sentence from the first trial by noting, "The method of the crime falls into a very egregious category, and we reflect this as a special aggravating factor."
Park Soo-hong's side said during the trial, "Park Soo-hong's 30 years of youth, built with blood and sweat, were denied by the defendants' criminal acts, and ties with parents and siblings were severed," and added, "He could only attain ordinary happiness—marrying someone he loves and having a child—after turning 50."