Court grants bail to ex-DP chief Song

A Seoul court on Thursday granted bail to Song Young-gil, a former head of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), who has been imprisoned since last December over a cash-for-votes scandal surrounding the party's 2021 leadership election. The Seoul Central District Court approved Song's request for bail, allowing him to be freed after 163 days of detention. Song was arrested in December and indicted in January over charges that his campaign distributed cash envelopes totaling 66 million won (US$50,366) to 20 sitting DP lawmakers and other party members in the run-up to the party's leadership election in May 2021, which he ultimately won. He was also accused of being involved in the collection of illegal political funds worth 763 million won by a think tank. Song has denied the charges. He filed for bail in March, but the same court rejected the request. Source: Yonhap News Agency