Shincheonji leader Lee Man-hee denies 7.5 billion won tax evasion charges

Lee Man-hee, the leader of the Shincheonji Church, has denied allegations of evading approximately 7.57 billion won in corporate and value-added taxes during a preliminary court hearing.

Prosecutors allege that between 2016 and 2020, Lee and other officials operated church convenience stores under the names of followers to conceal business profits and maintained dual accounting books. The defense argued that there was no intentional conspiracy to evade taxes, claiming the discrepancy was merely an omission of cash sales during the process of integrating unregistered stores into the formal system.

The Seoul Central District Court has scheduled the first formal trial for December 16. This case follows a previous decision by the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office not to indict Lee, a decision that was later overturned following a reinvestigation by a joint task force investigating corruption involving religious and political ties.