Man in His 60s Who Knelt to Block Parliamentary Investigation Committee at Olympic Park Receives Suspended Sentence in First Trial

[Financial News] A man in his 60s who was indicted for blocking lawmakers attempting to enter a ballot-counting station at Olympic Park and pushing a police officer who tried to stop him received a suspended prison sentence in the first trial.
On the 9th, Judge Jeong Jeong-ho, presiding over the Seoul Eastern District Court’s Criminal Division 8 as a single-judge panel, sentenced Mr. Lim, a man in his 60s indicted for obstructing the performance of official duties, to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years.
Mr. Lim is accused of blocking the path of a group of lawmakers attempting to enter the ballot-counting station and kneeling down to obstruct their movement during an on-site investigation by a parliamentary special committee held on July 2 at the handball gymnasium in Olympic Park, Songpa District, Seoul.
He was also accused of using violence by pushing a police officer who tried to restrain him.
The court determined that his culpability was not minor, considering the circumstances of the offense and Mr. Lim’s conduct at the time. It also viewed his multiple prior convictions for violent offenses as an unfavorable factor.
However, the court took into account as favorable factors that Mr. Lim admitted to the offense and expressed remorse, as well as the fact that he had been detained for about two months in connection with the case.
[email protected] Lee Dong-hyuk Reporter