
South Korean prosecutors will not appeal the partial acquittals of three former officials regarding the 2019 forced repatriation of two North Korean fishermen, but will challenge the acquittal of former presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min.
AI-generated summary
In November 2019, the South Korean government deported two North Korean fishermen accused of killing 16 crew members. The incident has been subject to legal scrutiny under the subsequent administration.
SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Yonhap) -- Prosecutors on Wednesday decided not to appeal the partial acquittals of three former government officials on charges related to the forced repatriation of two North Korean fishermen in 2019.
Earlier this month, the Seoul High Court upheld a lower court's guilty verdicts for Chung Eui-yong, former national security adviser; former National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon; and former Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul. It also upheld the acquittal of former presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min, who had earlier been convicted over his involvement in the case.
The appellate court acquitted Chung, Suh and Kim of charges of preparing false public documents.
The Seoul High Prosecutors Office said it would not appeal the partial acquittals.
The prosecution said it made the decision based on the judgment that there is a low possibility of those acquittals being overturned.
However, it will appeal Noh's acquittal.
All four served in former President Moon Jae-in's administration in November 2019, when Seoul deported two North Korean fishermen back to North Korea after they were captured near the eastern maritime border. The fishermen had been accused of killing 16 crew members.
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The Seoul High Prosecutors Office will file an appeal against Noh Young-min's acquittal.
Very likely · Within weeks

The appeal hearing will be held on December 4 for the lawsuit filed by Rep. Park Eun-jung of the Korea Reform Party to cancel the disciplinary action of dismissal she received while serving as a prosecutor. The first trial canceled the dismissal, but Rep. Park appealed, dissatisfied with the recognition of some grounds for disciplinary action.

Former Presidential Security Service Director Park Jong-joon, who was indicted on charges of obstructing the execution of an arrest warrant for former President Yoon Seok-yeol, was sentenced to three years in prison in the second trial. He was found guilty of interfering with the investigation of the Corruption Investigation Office and participating in the deletion of secret phone information.

The 2nd Comprehensive Special Prosecutor's Team, Kwon Chang-young, was criticized by the court for the inaccuracy of the indictment at the trial preparation date for former President Yoon Seok-yeol and former National Security Office Director Shin Won-sik. The special prosecutor's team was criticized for not responding to Shin Won-sik's request for explanation, saying it "seems to have ignored the court," and the indictment's criticism continued in the Deutsche Motors-related trial.

Park Jong-joon, former chief of the Presidential Security Service, received a reduced three-year prison sentence from an appellate court for blocking investigators from executing an arrest warrant for former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Japan's Tokyo District Court dismissed the state's responsibility in a lawsuit filed by residents affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear power plant accident and awarded 63 million yen in compensation to Tokyo Electric Power Company.

The Supreme Court issued an additional detention warrant for former first lady Kim Keon Hee, extending her custody by two months over concerns of fleeing or destroying evidence as a separate verdict remains pending.