'Drunk hit-and-run and driver swapping' Kim Ho-joong's first appeal...Will the sentence be reduced
Feb 12, 2025
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On the morning of the 12th, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Department 5-3 (Chief Judges Kim Ji-sun, So Byung-jin, and Kim Yong-joong) will hold the first hearing of Kim Ho-joong, who is suspected of violating the law on aggravated punishment for certain crimes (hazardous driving injuries).
Kim Ho-joong is suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on the night of May 9 last year when he crashed into an oncoming taxi and fled. After the accident, he was suspected of trying to change the driver, as well as circumstantial evidence that he drank additional alcohol to hide his drinking. At the time of the police investigation, he claimed "It is absolutely not drunk driving", but eventually it was revealed that it was a false explanation, raising controversy.
In the first trial held in November last year, Kim Ho-joong was sentenced to two and a half years in prison and arrested. The head of the agency and the head of the division, who helped cover up the drunk driving accident, were sentenced to two years and a year and a half in prison, respectively, while another employee was sentenced to one year in prison and two years of probation.
Kim Ho-joong immediately appealed the ruling of the first trial, and the prosecution also appealed against it, leading to a court battle.
mj.cho@sportschosun.com
