Appellate court grants bail to power broker Myung Tae-kyun

SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) -- An appellate court on Monday granted bail for a jailed self-proclaimed power broker convicted for providing free opinion polls to former President Yoon Suk Yeol between 2021 and 2022, legal sources said.

The Seoul High Court accepted Myung Tae-kyun's request for bail, about a month after a lower court sentenced him to an 18-month prison term on charges of violating the Political Funds Act.

The lower court found Myung guilty of making illegal political contributions by offering the opinion polls for free to Yoon and his wife between June 2021 and March 2022. The district court sentenced Yoon to a two-year prison term in the case.

With the Seoul High Court's decision to grant bail, Myung will stand his trial at the appellate court without physical detention.