Why is imprisoned ex-official 'very angry' with Lee over lack of parole?

Lee Hwa-young, a former vice governor of Gyeonggi Province who is serving a prison sentence of seven years and eight months in connection with Ssangbangwool Group's illegal remittances to North Korea, is seeking parole from President Lee Jae Myung, with his lawyer expressing frustration over what he says is a lack of progress despite appeals made through multiple channels.

Attorney Kim Kwang-min, who represents Lee Hwa-young, shared a media report on social media Wednesday and outlined his client's position.

"Lee Hwa-young is now in his fifth year of imprisonment and is very angry with President Lee," Kim said in the interview. "We have conveyed through various channels his wish to be granted parole, but all we hear is that they are 'working on it,' while there has been no action."

Kim also wrote on social media, "After concluding that the North Korea remittance case was fabricated, isn't the reality of completely abandoning someone who has been imprisoned for five years because of that very case far worse and more cruel?"

Lee Hwa-young's side reportedly sent a letter to the president and also conveyed its request for parole to the presidential office's civil affairs team.

Kim pointed to the releases of Kim Yong, a former deputy director of the Institute for Democracy, and Jeong Jin-sang, a former political affairs coordination chief in the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) leader's office, as well as defendants in the Daejang-dong case, saying Lee Hwa-young remains the only one still imprisoned.

In a phone interview with Hankook Ilbo on Wednesday, however, Kim said his comments did not mean Lee Hwa-young would take separate actions if the parole request was rejected.

"It doesn't mean that we'll play some card if they don't grant parole," Kim said. "It's more like saying that he's less angry now, but he'll become really angry if they don't do it."

The DPK has claimed that the investigation into the North Korea remittance case was fabricated and launched a special committee in April to pursue a parliamentary investigation into what it calls fabricated indictments by prosecutors under former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Kim also publicly called for Lee Hwa-young's release on Sept. 12, saying, "If the North Korea remittance case was really fabricated, shouldn't Lee Hwa-young be released immediately before calling for the indictment to be withdrawn?"

Lee Hwa-young was indicted on charges including receiving hundreds of millions of won in political funds and bribes from Ssangbangwool Group and conspiring in the transfer of $8 million to North Korea.

The Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling sentencing him to seven years and eight months in prison, along with a fine of 250 million won ($176,000) and a forfeiture order of 325.95 million won.

He was also indicted on a third-party bribery charge for allegedly arranging for Ssangbangwool to cover expenses related to a planned visit to North Korea by the president, who was governor of Gyeonggi Province at the time of the remittances. That case is currently being tried in court.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.