South Korean judge who hiked ex-first lady’s jail sentence found dead

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A South Korean judge who more than doubled the former first lady’s prison sentence last month was found dead on Wednesday, police said.

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Shin Jong-o was “found unconscious around 1:00 am (1600 GMT on Tuesday)… at the Seoul High Court building”, an investigator at Seocho district police station told AFP.

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Shin was taken to the hospital and pronounced dead, he said, adding: “There is no sign of foul play in the death.”

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Local media reported that Shin had left a suicide note, but the investigator said there was none.

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Last month, Shin presided over 53-year-old Kim Keon Hee’s appeal trial, finding her guilty of stock manipulation and bribery, and increasing her sentence to four years from 20 months.

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The heavier sentence came after her acquittal by a lower court on the stock manipulation charge was overturned.

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Shin said at the time that Kim had “failed to acknowledge her culpability and has instead consistently resorted to excuses”.

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The police investigator said on Wednesday that the judge’s “bereaved family is stricken by the incident” and requests privacy.

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AFP

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