The founder of pharmaceutical company Genencell has been sentenced to four years in prison on appeal in a case involving breach of trust and allegations surrounding efforts to accelerate approval for a COVID-19 clinical trial. The Seoul High Court also imposed a 40 million won fine and ordered the defendant detained in court after the ruling.
The appellate sentence was heavier than the first-instance judgment, which had imposed a three-year prison term suspended for five years. The appeals court also found the defendant guilty of a violation of the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment, reversing the lower court's acquittal on that charge.
Appeal court strengthens the sentence
According to the court findings reported by Korean media, the defendant submitted materials containing false information or omissions during the company's drug-development process in 2021. The court also found that a request related to faster clinical-trial approval was conveyed through a broker and Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won, and that 600 million won was paid to the broker in connection with the request.
The ruling concerns the founder's criminal liability and the appellate court's factual findings. It does not by itself establish separate criminal liability for every person named in the reported lobbying allegation. The decision nevertheless raises the legal significance of the approval-lobbying issue because the appellate court explicitly addressed it in reaching its judgment.