An attorney indicted on charges of involvement in Geonjin Jeon Seong-bae receiving money from corporations in return for favors was sentenced to prison in the first trial and was taken into custody in court.
The Criminal Agreement Division 33 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Lee Jin-gwan) on the 30th sentenced Kim, the former attorney for Jeon, who was indicted on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (brokerage bribery) and the Attorney‑at‑Law Act, to one year and six months in prison and ordered the forfeiture of a little over 86 million won. Citing concerns about destruction of evidence, the bench had Kim taken into custody in court.
Kim was indicted on charges of conspiring with Jeon and being involved, from September 2022 to October 2023, in the process of receiving a total of 167 million won in return for accommodating a request from the content corporations Conlab Company. Kim also faced a charge of receiving 25 million won in May 2024 after introducing an acquaintance who is an attorney to another defendant in a criminal case Kim had taken on.
The court found Kim guilty of all major charges. The court said, "Conlab Company was involved not only in the process of making a request to Jeon Seong-bae but also in deciding the amount of money to be delivered to Jeon and the method of receipt," and added, "It is recognized that, in collusion with Jeon Seong-bae, the defendant received a brokerage fee into an account in the defendant's name."
On the sentencing grounds, the court said, "The defendant joined the crimes by riding the coattails of the Geonjin group that parasitizes power to pursue various private gains," and added, "Even during the trial, the defendant evaded responsibility by making incomprehensible false claims and did not show a reflective attitude."
Kim had represented Jeon from the time Jeon was investigated by the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office in the so-called "Geonjin gate." Kim then resigned from Jeon's defense after being booked as a suspect during the special counsel investigation into Kim Keon-hee.