Lee Jae-myung is not guilty of perjury in the first trial..."There's no evidence of involvement."

Representative Lee Jae-myung 'sentenced not guilty' in the first trial of perjury teacher

The court said, "There is no direct evidence that representative Lee perjured."

"No specific testimony has been decided."

[Anchor]
Lee Jae-myung, chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, was acquitted in the first trial of the perjury teacher case.

We will connect you to the YTN legal team reporter for the detailed judgment of the court.

Reporter Kwon Junsu and Kim Dahyun, please come out.

[Reporter Kwon Junsu]
Yes, we are at the Seoul Central District Court.

Representative Lee Jae-myung's first trial was sentenced a little while ago.

I'll share the news with reporter Kim Da-hyun.

Reporter Kim, shall we summarize the sentence first?

[Reporter Kim Dahyun]
Yes, Lee Jae-myung, chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, who is suspected of asking perjury to witness Kim Jin-sung in his trial in 2018, was acquitted.

Earlier, CEO Lee waited for the ruling with a smile on his lips in court ahead of the sentence.

After that, I listened to the sentence with an expressionless face.

Above all, the first trial court found that there was no direct evidence of abetting perjury by acquitting CEO Lee.

It is difficult to say that CEO Lee intervened in the trial asking for false testimony.

When CEO Lee talked to Kim Jin-sung, the secretary of the late former Seongnam Mayor Kim Byung-ryang, he judged that Kim did not decide whether he would testify or what kind of testimony he would testify specifically.

[Anchor]
Then, how did the court judge Kim Jin-sung's testimony?

[Reporter]
Yes, some of Kim Jin-sung's remarks about representative Lee Jae-myung were considered perjury.

Kim Jin-sung, who was tried on charges of perjury, was fined 5 million won in the first trial.

However, as I said, CEO Lee was found not guilty.

The court saw that the teacher's intention could not be considered.

The court also explained that it is difficult to interpret that CEO Lee asked Kim for perjury only by mentioning his unilateral claim.

Rather, I judged that he was saying it to the purpose of telling me as representative Lee was.

Regarding the prosecution's claim that CEO Lee urged Kim to perjury by providing a summary of his argument,
It was determined that it was not against common sense that
asked the representative's memory as a way to confirm the data supporting his claim and made Kim recall the situation at the time.

[Reporter Kwon Junsu]
What was the reaction of CEO Lee Jae-myung after the trial?

[Reporter Kim Dahyun]
Lee left the court shortly after the sentence and said he was grateful to the court for bringing back truth and justice.

Although the process is difficult and long, he said it is a part of the Changhae family, and that the difficulty he has is just one narrow rice in the sea.

It is insignificant compared to the difficulties the people face.

Lee also told the government and the ruling party that they will do their best for the better lives of the people and that they should now pursue politics that saves people rather than killing them.

[Reporter Kwon Junsu]
There is a rally around the court, so please tell us how the reaction was.

[Reporter Kim Dahyun]
Yes, as soon as the results of the trial came out, representative Lee Jae-myung's support group stood up and cheered, saying they were innocent.

He welcomed the acquittal by shouting out CEO Lee's name.

It was like holding up a placard saying thank you for the just verdict or waving a blue balloon over your head.

On the other hand, conservative groups continued to speak freely, and they also voiced criticism of the judge in charge.

About 60 Democratic Party members, including active lawmakers, also visited the court today.

Representative Kang Sun-woo and others smiled broadly immediately after the sentence was completed, and some showed tears.

[Reporter Kwon Junsu]
Today's sentence is likely to be an important inflection point for Lee's political life, so what are the repercussions expected?

[Reporter Kim Dahyun]
With the acquittal this time, CEO Lee Jae-myung, who was on five trials, has one less judicial risk.

As representative Lee received a suspended prison sentence 10 days ago for violating the Public Official Election Act, the Democratic Party of Korea was burdened if he was found guilty again.

The prosecution is expected to decide whether to appeal or not while analyzing the ruling.

We will deliver the details again as soon as we confirm it.

So far, the Seoul Central District Court has informed you.