Park stands trial in same courtroom as coup leaders Chun, Roh

Former President Park Geun-hye took to the stand on Tuesday, becoming the latest in the growing list of powerful figures to be tried at courtroom No. 417.

Arriving at the Seoul Central District Court Tuesday morning, Park made her first public appearance since she was indicted and arrested on 18 charges in mid-April. The charges against hear include bribery, abuse of power, coercion and leaks of government secrets to her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil.

She was handcuffed with her inmate number 503 attached to her navy suit, escorted by correctional officials.

This composite file photo shows former President Park Geun-hye (2nd from R) and her confidante Choi Soon-sil (far R) as they enter a courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court on May 23, 2017, to stand trial over a string of corruption charges. The photo on the left shows former President Chun Doo-hwan (2nd from L) and former President Roh Tae-woo (far L) on Aug. 26, 1996, in prison uniforms in the same courtroom being tried on numerous counts of insurgency, graft and murder. (Yonhap)

She was escorted to the courtroom that was the stage for the 1996 trial of Chun Doo-hwan and his successor Roh Tae-woo, where they were tried for their roles in the 1979 military coup and corruption charges. The two were given the death penalty and 22.5 years in prison respectively in the first trial, but later were pardoned by former President Kim Young-sam.

The courtroom has also been used for the trials of the country’s top business moguls. The list of the courtroom’s famous guests includes Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn on a variety of charges including embezzlement.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman and the group’s heir apparent Lee Jae-yong is also in his own trial in the same courtroom under suspicion of having bribed Choi in return for Park’s aid in the controversial merger of two Samsung units.

The merger was seen as a crucial step to smooth the transfer of power from his father and its chairman.

The corruption scandal removed Park from office on March 10, which triggered the earlier-than-scheduled May 9 presidential election.

The ousted ex-leader’s main charges include an allegation that she received bribes worth some 59.2 billion won ($52 million) from three conglomerates -- Samsung, Lotte and SK -- to two foundations allegedly operated by herself and Choi.

Also on Tuesday, Choi and Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin stood trial along with Park.

The ex-leader’s verdict of the first trial is expected to come mid-October following tight-scheduled three-to-four hearings per week.

By Bak Se-hwan (sh@heraldcorp.com)

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