Seoul District Court ordered Thursday the removal from custody of Kim Byung-kwan, the former honorary chairperson of the Donga Ilbo, who had been arrested and detained for alleged tax evasion, granting him immediate bail. Kim was released in the afternoon.
The court ruled that as the coming season could be harmful to Kim's chronic cardiac condition, which has already worsened from imprisonment, his custody should be suspended indefinitely, on the condition that Kim limits movement to his residence and Korea University's Anam Hospital.
Kim was arrested in September for allegedly dodging some W430 million of tax and embezzling some W180 million of Donga Ilbo funds.
