Oh Se-hoon, Myung Tae-gyun Clash in Court Over Alleged Poll Cost Scheme

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon faced Myung Tae-gyun in court on the 20th, presenting their respective arguments regarding allegations of poll cost cover-ups related to Seoul city promotion. The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Agreement Division 22 held the third hearing for Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, former Seoul Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs Kang Chul-won, and businessman Kim Han-jung, who were indicted on charges of violating the Political Funds Act. Mayor Oh is accused of commissioning a poll from Mr. Myung Tae-gyun through former Deputy Mayor Kang ahead of the 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election, and arranging for Mr. Kim to cover approximately 33 million won in costs.

Mr. Myung, appearing as a witness, testified in court that he was directly commissioned for the poll by Mayor Oh and discussed its details with then-Deputy Mayor Kang Chul-won. Myung claimed that following his first meeting with Mayor Oh in December 2020, Mayor Oh proposed buying him an apartment in Seoul in January 2021, while mentioning the poll costs of 20 million won.

Mayor Oh's side focused on pointing out that Mr. Myung did not directly deliver poll results to Mayor Oh and no contract was signed. However, Mr. Myung countered that he communicated with former Deputy Mayor Kang instead of signing a contract due to concerns about violating the Political Funds Act.