Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk and his wife on Monday asked an appellate court to summon an American professor as a witness to refute the charge that they took an online test on behalf of their son while he was attending George Washington University (GWU) in 2016.
Lawyers of Cho and his wife, Chung Kyung-sim, made the request during a hearing at the Seoul High Court after they were convicted by a lower court of obstruction of business in connection with the online exam cheating allegations.
Cho was sentenced to two years in prison by the Seoul Central District Court in February on charges related to academic irregularities involving his children, including obstructing the business of GWU by helping his son solve online exam questions. Chung was released on parole in September after serving one-third of her four-year prison term for her involvement in document forgery related to her daughter's college admission.
The lawyers said GWU professor Geoffrey Macdonald is willing to appear in the Korean court in February or March next year to testify at the hearing of Cho and his wife.
The lawyers quoted the professor as saying he is willing to explain the U.S. school system after revealing doubts as to why such a matter has become the subject of a criminal trial. But prosecutors denounced the lawyers' request as an attempt to delay the appellate court trial by two to three months after Cho has recently indicated an intention to run in next April's general elections.