The Public Prosecution Service requested prison sentences for Genencell founder Kang and broker Yang who were involved in the 'suspicion of requesting clinical trials for COVID-19 new drugs', a member of the Democratic Party of Korea's Kim Seung-won.
At the hearing held on the 12th by Judge Seong Jun-gyu, Criminal Division 10 of the Seoul Western District Court, to determine charges against Mr. Kang and Mr. Yang, including promising to pay bribes, the Public Prosecution Office requested the court to sentence Mr. Yang to 4 years in prison and a fine of approximately 601.1 million won, and to Mr. Kang to 6 months in prison.
The two are accused of requesting expedited processing from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety through Rep. Kim Seung-won, who was a member of the National Assembly at the time, in the process of receiving approval for a clinical trial plan for the COVID-19 treatment that Genencell was developing, and later agreeing to provide 5 million won in political donations to candidate Kim.
Separately, Mr. Kang, who was being tried on charges of interfering with the performance of his duties by public officials by obtaining approval for clinical trials while hiding the results of animal testing, was sentenced to four years in prison and a fine of 40 million won at the appeals court last September and was arrested in court. Mr. Kang objected and appealed.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, after receiving a request from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to supplement the clinical trial plan in October 2021, Mr. Kang asked Mr. Yang to “help ensure that the clinical trial plan is approved quickly.”
It was found that Representative Kim, who received Mr. Yang's request, made a request to the Minister of Food and Drug Safety at the time to expedite the clinical trial plan. In fact, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved the clinical trial plan two weeks later.
The indictment included the prosecution's claim that Rep. Kim had asked for up to 5 million won in donations if things went well, as well as the content that Mr. Yang sent an email to Mr. Kang saying, "Please donate 5 million won to Rep. Kim Seung-won, who worked hard to get the approval."
Rep. Kim provided the donation account, and Mr. Kang tried to send money, but the actual money was not delivered because the fundraising limit was reached at the time.
The prosecution said that Rep. Kim was admitted to the charge of accepting 5 million won in donations in exchange for mediation, but suspended the indictment in December 2024, saying, "It is difficult to conclude that the solicitation itself is illegal." Rep. Kim objected to this and filed a constitutional appeal.
In his final statement, Broker Yang shed tears, saying, "I hope you can distinguish between the mistakes I made and the crimes I did not commit. After the media report in 2023, I suffered from numerous malicious comments and criticism, and I lost a lot of things I had built up throughout my life."
Mr. Yang claimed, "I have filed a complaint with Rep. Kim Seung-won related to the development of a COVID-19 treatment," but added, "I only asked for a quick review according to established procedures, and I have not requested that the complaint be handled unfairly or in violation of any regulations."
He also emphasized that he never promised to provide money or economic benefits to Rep. Kim Seung-won.
Regarding the money received from Mr. Kang, the founder of Genencell, he denied any compensation, saying, "While I was running the company, unexpected additional orders came in and I needed funds temporarily. I borrowed 100 million won from CEO Kang, who was in a romantic relationship at the time, and repaid the entire amount in about two months. It was not money I received in return for mediation."
Regarding the suspicion that Genencell acquired the convertible bonds of Gusta, a company run by Mr. Yang, in exchange for the introduction of Rep. Kim Seung-won, he said, "It was an investment for growth and business expansion."
Regarding the embezzlement charges, Mr. Yang said, "It was not prudent to transfer company funds to a personal account and invest in virtual assets," but insisted that there was no intention to embezzle funds, saying that this process was done with shareholder consent.
Mr. Kang also denied the charges again, saying that he only wanted to know the progress of the clinical trial plan so that it would not be delayed, and that he had never expressed his intention to pay donations in exchange for forwarding the complaint.
Rep. Kim, who was previously nominated as a candidate for Minister of Justice, voluntarily resigned from his candidacy last September.
The sentencing for Mr. Yang and Mr. Kang will be handed down at 10 a.m. on January 14th next year.
