Prosecutors drop appeal, acquittals of ex-chief of staff Noh, ex-minister Kim finalized

Prosecutors have dropped their appeal against the acquittals of former presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min and former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mee, who had been indicted on charges of pressuring a private company to hire a Democratic Party of Korea official as a favor.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office did not file an appeal with the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 19 by Thursday, the deadline, legal sources said Friday. The acquittals of Noh and Kim are now final.

Prosecutors are understood to have decided against appealing out of respect for the court's finding that recommending candidates for advisory positions at the ministry had been standard practice and that there was insufficient evidence the defendants had been aware of any wrongdoing.

The case stems from a 2022 investigation into Lee Jeong-geun, a former deputy secretary-general of the Democratic Party of Korea, on charges of illegally receiving political funds. Prosecutors also investigated allegations that in August 2020, Noh and Kim had arranged for Lee to be hired as a full-time adviser at Korea Integrated Logistics, interfering with the company's personnel operations.

Prosecutors indicted both on obstruction charges in January last year. Noh maintained that the indictment was a smear campaign designed to cast a routine personnel recommendation — a legal and ordinary function — as a corrupt favor. Kim pushed back, saying Korea Integrated Logistics had never expressed opposition to the ministry about hiring Lee.

Judge Lim Hye-won of Seoul Central District Court acquitted both Noh and Kim on Aug. 13. Recommending Lee as the next full-time adviser at Korea Integrated Logistics followed established practice, the judge said, adding that the conduct could not be characterized as the exercise of undue influence or interference with the company's hiring process.