A close aide of main opposition Democratic Party(DP) leader Lee Jae-myung was released on bail on Wednesday, after he was taken into custody after receiving a five-year prison sentence last November.
 
Kim Yong, a former deputy head of the main opposition Democratic Party's Institute for Democracy think tank was indicted last November for receiving illegal political funds in 2021 from a real estate developer.
 
He was also indicted for pocketing 190 million won in bribe money from 2013 to 2014, and was immediately taken into custody after the Seoul Central District Court handed him a five-year prison sentence, and noted concerns that Kim could attempt to destroy evidence before his sentencing hearing.
 
However, the 13th Criminal Division of the Seoul High Court accepted Kim's bail request on Wednesday, 160 days after he was taken into custody.
 

The scandal centers on allegations that Hwacheon Daeyu, a private asset management company, secured a lucrative development project in Daejang-dong in Seongnam, gaining hefty profits thanks to help from officials at a time when the DP chief was Seongnam's mayor.