Former Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Lee Sang-jik, the founder of Eastar Jet Co., was cleared of all charges in a case over alleged "flight attendant hiring irregularities."
The Supreme Court's First Division (presiding Justice Chun Dae-yup) on the 25th upheld a lower court ruling that acquitted the former lawmaker in his final appeal on charges including obstruction of business.
Prosecutors indicted the former lawmaker on charges of obstructing Eastar Jet Co.'s personnel affairs by recommending certain applicants to the HR team during flight attendant hiring from 2015 to 2019. Prosecutors said the former lawmaker exerted outside pressure on HR officials to hire 147 applicants whose scores fell short of the criteria. Of those, 76 ultimately passed.
The former lawmaker's side said during the investigation and trial, "Prosecutors wrongly deemed recommendations of applicants expressly allowed in corporations' hiring systems as the use of influence." The former lawmaker argued, "It was a decision to prevent the outflow of local talent and to prioritize hiring employees who would serve long-term."
The former lawmaker was also charged with offering a bribe in the form of a "job opportunity" by arranging the illicit hiring of the daughter of an official, identified as A, at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in 2016. A's daughter twice failed the document screening for lacking an official foreign-language test score but, after a re-review, was ultimately accepted by the airline..
In the first trial, the court sentenced the former lawmaker to 1 year and 6 months in prison for obstruction of business and 4 months for offering a bribe. The first-instance court said, "Management's instructions constitute 'influence' that overpowers the free will of HR officials."
In the second trial, the court acquitted the former lawmaker of the charges of obstruction of business and offering a bribe. On the obstruction charge, the appellate court said, "One cannot conclude there was an exercise of influence (overpowering free will) based solely on the circumstances that HR officials felt pressured or anxious about possible disadvantages." On the bribery charge, it said, "It is difficult to acknowledge that the former lawmaker was briefed on or ordered the hiring of A's child."
As for A, who was indicted alongside on the charge of receiving a bribe in the form of a "job opportunity," a 4-month prison sentence was finalized. The appellate court said, "When A's child failed the document screening, A contacted an Eastar Jet Co. employee," adding, "A's duties are related to Eastar Jet Co.'s sales, so job-relatedness is recognized." A appealed, but the Supreme Court dismissed the case.
A Supreme Court official said the court affirmed the lower court's acquittal on grounds including that there was insufficient evidence of specific words or conduct amounting to "influence" when the former lawmaker conveyed to the HR team the list of applicants who had requested hiring favors.