The special counsel investigating the Marine's death appealed the case of former Black Pearl Invest CEO Lee Jong-ho, who was indicted on charges of ordering his mobile phone to be destroyed but was acquitted in the first trial. The move is to continue a legal battle over the lower court's finding that Lee should be seen not as an instigator of evidence destruction but as a co-principal, and that a person cannot be punished for destroying evidence related to one's own case.
The 26th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (chief judge Lee Hyun-kyung) on the 2nd acquitted Lee of the charge of inciting evidence destruction. In contrast, the court fined a person surnamed Cha, who destroyed and discarded the phone on Lee's orders, 3 million won.
The court found that because Lee personally threw the phone and joined Cha in the destruction, he should be viewed as a co-principal, not an instigator. It then applied the established legal principle that destroying evidence related to one's own criminal case is not punishable under the Criminal Act.
The special counsel said on Apr. 7 it filed an appeal in the case. The special counsel said, "If this logic is finalized, it will result in an absurd guideline that those who try to destroy evidence will be guilty of incitement only if they have someone else do it, but will be acquitted if they lend a hand themselves." It added, "This is extremely difficult to accept under the public's common sense and is nothing more than an exoneration enabled by legal technicalities," and "We will appeal and contest the ruling to prevent it from hardening into a precedent that deepens the gap between law and common sense and undermines the rule of law."
Lee is accused of ordering Cha on July 15 last year at Jamwon Hangang Park in Seocho-gu, Seoul, to destroy and discard the mobile phone. The special counsel indicted Lee on the view that he first threw the phone to the ground, then handed it to Cha to stomp on, and afterward had it thrown into a park trash can. At the time, the special counsel was looking into whether Lee used his connection with Kim Keon-hee to get involved in lobbying to save former 1st Marine Division Commander Lim Seong-geun.
The case moved to an open trial after the special counsel in November last year sought summary orders of 5 million won and 3 million won in fines for Lee and Cha, respectively, and the court referred the matter to a formal trial. Cha, who was convicted in the first trial, also filed an appeal on the 3rd.