▲ Rep. Jeong Jun-ho of the ruling Democratic Party (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Yonhap) -- A court on Friday sentenced Rep. Jeong Jun-ho of the ruling Democratic Party to a fine of 10 million won (US$7,220) for violating election and political fund laws, a sentence that could strip him of his National Assembly seat if finalized.

The Gwangju District Court in Gwangju, 270 kilometers south of Seoul, also ordered Jeong to forfeit 50 million won in connection with the same charges.

Jeong was indicted on charges of accepting 50 million won from the CEO of a construction company around July 2023, about nine months before the general elections in April 2024, in exchange for promising to hire the executive's child as his legislative assistant if elected to the National Assembly.

The lawmaker was also accused of making illicit payments to his campaign workers to operate a telephone campaign center between November 2023 and February 2024, ahead of the Democratic Party's primary for the 2024 general elections.

By law, members of the National Assembly are stripped of their seats if sentenced to a finalized penalty of a fine of 1 million won or greater for violating the election or political fund laws.

Jeong's trial resumed after prosecutors re-indicted him following a court decision in February to dismiss the charges due to a prosecutorial error.

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