SEOUL — In a significant development related to a high-profile corruption scandal, the Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday sentenced a lobbyist to five years in prison for his involvement in irregularities surrounding a property development project in Seongnam City.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim In-seob, who served as a former campaign policy chief for Lee Jae-myung's bid for Seongnam mayor, was found guilty of accepting 7.7 billion won (approximately US$5.8 million) and other business rights from a property development firm in exchange for securing administrative favors.
The scandal is linked to Lee Jae-myung's tenure as the mayor of Seongnam, focusing on accusations that the municipal government extended special benefits to a private developer for the development of the Baekhyeon-dong area into apartment complexes between 2015 and 2016. In addition to the prison term, the court also ordered Kim to forfeit 6.35 billion won.
This ruling represents the first judicial decision within the broader scope of the corruption scandal, which implicates Lee Jae-myung, the current leader of the main opposition Democratic Party and former mayor of Seongnam from 2014 to 2017. Lee is also facing trial, accused of participating in the scandal and causing a 20 billion-won loss to Seongnam's housing development agency.
Prosecutors allege that Kim played a key role in illicitly lobbying then-Mayor Lee Jae-myung and one of his aides to ensure that Seongnam RandD PFV was selected as the exclusive partner for the development project, sidelining the city-run development agency, Seongnam Development Corp.