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Cho acquitted of document leak in 'memogate'
By Lee Kyung-min
Cho Eung-chon, former presidential secretary, answers reporters’questions at the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul after being acquitted of charges of leaking confidential information and violating the Presidential Records Management Act, Thursday. / Yonhap
By Lee Kyung-min
A district court acquitted former presidential secretary Cho Eung-chon on charges that he leaked presidential documents, Thursday.
The Seoul Central district Court cleared Cho of violating the Presidential Records Management Act and leaking confidential information.
While Cho passed copies of original documents to an outsider, the court did not recognize a copied one as a presidential document.
“If all copied documents are regarded as presidential records, it means all such copies should be preserved and those damaging them should face criminal punishment. It is unreasonable,” it said.
Regarding the confidential information leak allegation, the court said it was within Cho’s official duty.
But the court handed down a seven-year prison term and a 43 million won ($38,000) fine to Cho’s subordinate, Park Gwan-choen, who was indicted on similar charges plus accepting bribes.
It acquitted Park of leaking presidential documents, but ruled that he leaked confidential information on his own without Cho’s order.
The prosecution earlier demanded two years in prison for Cho, and 10 years and a 93 million won fine for Park.
“I just wish the prosecution would admit it was wrong and not appeal,” Cho said after the ruling.
“But the prosecution is very likely to appeal, so my pain may continue,” he said. “I’ve never thought that I violated the law. I just worked harder than anybody else.”
Cho and Park were the two key figures in the “memogate,” in which 17 presidential documents were leaked, and some of which were given to Park Ji-man, the brother of President Park Geun-hye, from June 2013 until January last year.
The internal documents contained information about the president’s relatives and aides, including Jeong Yun-hoe, a former aide to President Park. The documents alleged that Jeong pulled strings in state affairs, including appointments of high-ranking government officials, by having regular meetings with 10 presidential secretaries.
Park, a police superintendent, wrote the documents when he worked at the presidential office, helped Cho deliver the Cheong Wa Dae reports to the President’s brother. He also took some of the documents from the presidential office and kept them at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency building for several days, resulting in several other officers copying them.
When suspicions about the document leak emerged in April last year, he submitted a false report to Cheong Wa Dae and falsely blamed other officials for being responsible.
Park later faced an additional charge of bribery for receiving some 170 million won in exchange for dismissing a police officer.
In an earlier prosecution investigation, Jeong denied the allegation saying the accusation was based on “groundless rumors,” saying that he would take any punishment if any of the allegations were found to be true.
Following the investigation, the prosecution concluded earlier this year that Jeong's alleged influence-peddling was false, citing a lack of evidence to prove that any meetings with Cheong Wa Dae officials took place.