South Korea's Lee Jae-myung condemns media for unverified claims of organized-crime ties
South Korea’s president, Lee Jae-myung, has publicly condemned media outlets for reporting unverified claims that he was tied to organized crime during the 2022 presidential race. His response followed a Supreme Court decision that upheld a lower court’s verdict against Jang Young-ha, a Seongnam Sujeong District official from the ruling People Power Party, on charges of spreading false information under election law. The court finalized a sentence of one year in prison, suspended for two years.
Lee’s comments appeared after he shared on X (formerly Twitter) a post by Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Geon-tae noting the court’s ruling. He wrote that he desires a world where fake news does not flow freely, and he criticized media that published the allegations without verification and with no corrections. He said many people still believe he is connected to organized crime and warned that irresponsible reporting is dangerous.
![Arms of Arthur Lee, 1st Viscount Lee of Fareham (1868–1947). After having donated Chequers Court in Buckinghamsire to the UK Government for use as a Prime Ministerial residence, Viscount Lee and his wealthy American heiress wife (nee Ruth Moore) moved to Old Quarry House in Gloucestershire. In 1922 he was elevated to the title of "Viscount Lee of Fareham, of Bridport in the County of Dorset", having previously held that of "Baron Lee of Fareham, of Chequers in the County of Buckinghamshire", created 1918.
Heraldry
Blazon: Argent, two chevronels between thee leopard's faces sable, overall in pretence: Chequy or and sable. The shield in pretence displays the w:attributed arms (i.e. pre-heraldic) of Elias Ostiarius (or Elias de Scaccario), who in the 12th century held the Manor of Ellesborough, Buckinghamshire, within which stands the present 16th century structure of Chequers Court, whose two alternative Latinised surnames mean respectively "of the door", thus "door-keeper/porter" (Cassell's Latin Dictionary, Marchant, J.R.V, & Charles, Joseph F., (Eds.), Revised Edition, 1928, p.387) and "from the Exchequer". He is thus believed to have been an Usher of the Court of the Exchequer. The "chequy" arms are therefore supposed to be a reference to the chequered table cloth used by the early Barons of the Court of the Exchequer (King's Treasury) to make financial computations or accounts, and have now become the symbol of Chequers Court. (J. Gilbert Jenkins, Chequers, A History of the Prime Minister's Buckinghamshire Home, 1967[1], pp.10-11) ("The History of Chequers" ( https://www.museumofpm.org/chequers/ )). The duties of the various Ushers of the Exchequer are described in the 12th-century treatise The Dialogue Concerning the Exchequer as follows:[2]
As to the Usher of the Upper Exchequer. That usher, alone, without an associate, guards the door of the exchequer building: unless when, from his own home, he takes servants for the burdensome part of his office. Likewise the same man guards the door of the chamber of secrets, which is situated next to the exchequer building,. Thither go the barons when a doubtful question is propounded to them in the exchequer, concerning which they prefer to deliberate by themselves rather than in the hearing of all. But it is chiefly on this account that they go apart by themselves, - lest namely, the accounts which are being made up at the exchequer should be impeded; and while they are delaying in private. council, the usual course of the accounts goes on. But if any question should arise, it would be referred to them. It is also free to the usher, with impunity, to preclude ingress when he wishes to any men - even if great in authority - who are not necessary to the matter in hand. To those alone, who sit at the exchequer by reason of their office or by mandate of the king, is -voluntary ingress to either chamber permitted. But if they are persons vouched for, who can not suitably go in when alone, one or two may be shown into the outer building of the exchequer; but into the chamber of secrets only the officials enter, others being excluded; unless when they are called by their masters to perform some matters for the king. Likewise the usher receives the summonses, made out and signed by the marshall. When the exchequer of that term has been dissolved, he bears them in his own person, or by means of a faithful messenger, throughout England, as has been said above. He also, by command of the president, calls into the latter's presence, when he needs them, the sheriffs, who are dispersed in all directions outside the building. Likewise it pertains to him to see to any of the small matters which are necessary in the exchequer building-such as placing and preparing the seats around the exchequer and the like
The "Usher of the Greater Exchequer" was paid 5 pence per day. Concerning the (Lower?) Usher:
It is the duty of the usher to exclude or admit as is necessary, and to be diligent in guarding every thing which is shut in by the door; wherefore, as door-money, he shall have two pence from each writ of exit. He furnishes the boxes to put the money in, and the rolls and the tallies, and the other things which become necessary during the year; and for each box he has two pence. He furnishes the whole Receipt with wood suitable for the tallies of receipts and of accounts, and once, that is at the Michaelmas term, be receives five shillings for the wood of the tallies. He furnishes the wooden receptacles, the knives, the compartments, and the straps and the other minute necessaries of the fisc. At that same term are due two shillings for furnishing the ink of the whole year to both exchequers, and this amount, by ancient right, the sacristan of the greater church of Westminster claims for himself.
It is possible that these arms were granted to Arthur Lee by the College of Arms in 1918 on his elevation to the House of Lords as "Baron Lee of Fareham, of Chequers in the County of Buckinghamshire", when he resigned his seat in the House of Commons as Conservative Party MP for Fareham in Hampshire, having in the previous year donated the house and estate of Chequers to the UK Government, for prime ministerial use, as formalised in the "Chequers Estate Act" of 1917.](https://journalkor.site/content/images/2026/03/01_Arms_of_Arthur_Lee__1st_Viscount_Lee_of_Fareham.png)
Jang Young-ha is described as the chairman of the People Power Party’s Sujeong district committee in Seongnam. He is also the former legal representative for Park Cheol-min, a member of a violent gang known as the International Mafia. Park’s 2021 claim alleged that Lee Jae-myung, during his time as Seongnam mayor, granted business favors to the gang in exchange for about 200 million won. Prosecutors initially did not indict Jang, believing Park’s statements; the Democratic Party appealed, and the court accepted the reconsideration request, leading to Jang’s indictment in May 2023.
Lee Geon-tae stated on X that the ruling’s finalization occurred and that he had served as the Democratic Party’s legal affairs committee vice chair at the time the party sought a reconsideration. The party’s involvement underscores ongoing internal debates over how to respond to allegations against high-profile figures.
![Confederate General Robert E. Lee poses in a late April 1865([1]) portrait taken by Mathew Brady in Richmond, Virginia. Lee's surrender to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House on 9 April 1865, soon before this portrait was taken, marked the end of the American Civil War.
Dust and scratches removed by Thegreenj](https://journalkor.site/content/images/2026/03/02_Robert_E._Lee__1865__edit_.jpg)
Cheongju, the city where the town hall event referenced in the coverage took place, sits in North Chungcheong Province. The Osaka-style venue OsCo hosted the gathering, described in the report as part of a broader series titled “Listening to Chungbuk’s Heart.” For international readers, the episode illustrates how domestic political disputes, media coverage, and judicial decisions intertwine in a major U.S. ally with significant implications for markets and policy.
For U.S. readers, the episode matters because South Korea is a key security and economic partner, home to global tech supply chains and advanced manufacturing. The case highlights how misinformation, election-law defamation questions, and media dynamics can influence public trust, political risk, and investor confidence in a country that plays a central role in regional security, semiconductor supply chains, and alliance politics with the United States.