Kang Sun-woo sentenced to 2.5 years for political bribery

Independent lawmaker Kang Sun-woo was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison by the Seoul Central District Court for violating the Political Funds Act. The court also ordered a fine of 100 million won. Kang, who was previously released on bail, was immediately taken into custody following the ruling.

The court found that in January 2022, ahead of the local elections, Kang received 100 million won in cash from former Seoul City Councilor Kim Kyung in exchange for securing a political nomination. Evidence presented in the ruling indicated that Kang actively assisted Kim’s nomination by providing information on interview questions and advising him to use Telegram to communicate with the nomination committee secretary to avoid detection.

Kim Kyung was sentenced to 1 year in prison and was also taken into custody. A former aide to Kang, identified as Mr. Nam, received a sentence of 8 months in prison, suspended for 2 years. The court noted that the incident severely undermined the fairness of the election system and public trust in political institutions. If the sentence is finalized, Kang will lose her seat in the National Assembly.