'Coin Asset Disclosure Controversy' Kim Nam-kook Acquitted Again in Second Trial

Kim Nam-kook, Secretary for Digital Communication at the Presidential Office, was acquitted again in the second trial on charges of falsely reporting his virtual asset holdings in his National Assembly property declaration.

The Criminal Appellate Division 3-1 of the Seoul Southern District Court delivered a not-guilty verdict on the 21st for Secretary Kim, who had been indicted for obstruction of official duties by fraudulent means, upholding the first trial's decision.

Previously, Secretary Kim had been prosecuted in August last year for allegedly interfering with the review of changes in holdings by the Public Officials Ethics Committee. Before he reported his assets as a lawmaker in 2021 and 2022, he was accused of transferring a portion of his virtual asset deposits to his bank account to match his total declared assets, then converting the remaining deposits to virtual assets.

Prosecutors believed that Secretary Kim tried to conceal his deposits, which amounted to ₩9.9 billion during the process of reporting asset changes in February 2022, and indicted him on that basis.

After the trial, Secretary Kim told reporters, "This latest prosecution is an evidently political charge that goes against Supreme Court precedent and the criminal code," and added, "That is why both the trial and appellate courts delivered acquittals with a single hearing date."