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Seoul Central District Court. / Reporter Park Sung-il

Hyun Woo-jin, a star private cram school instructor indicted on charges of paying hundreds of millions of won to incumbent schoolteachers in exchange for test questions, has been acquitted.

Presiding Judge Lee Jae-wook of Criminal Division 10 at the Seoul Central District Court on the 26th found Hyun not guilty of violating the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act. Two teachers and an official, identified by the initial A from an educational materials development company, who were also put on trial over allegations of question transactions, were acquitted as well.

The court ruled, "Even if it takes the form of a private transaction, if money or valuables exceeding the consideration are paid, it can be viewed as the fulfillment of a debt arising from a private transaction and therefore constitutes an exception to the prohibition against receiving money or valuables under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act. However, the amounts paid to specialized firms for providing questions were at a level similar to those paid to the teachers." In other words, if the money received by teachers for providing questions represents fair compensation, they cannot be punished under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act.

The court also emphasized, "The law is the minimum of morality, and criminal punishment is the measure of last resort for resolving problems," adding, "It is neither possible nor appropriate to punish all public officials simply because there are improper aspects to their conduct."

Hyun was accused of colluding with A to hand over 346 million won to two teachers between around March 2020 and May 2023 in exchange for creating questions related to the College Scholastic Ability Test.

Meanwhile, immediately after the ruling was delivered that day, defense counsel for the teachers stated, "It appears that investigative agencies pushed through an unreasonable indictment following media reports labeling this a private education cartel," adding, "We thank the court for delivering a balanced ruling."

                                                                                                        Son Seung-hyun