[Yonhap Photo]
SEOUL, Jan. 15 (Aju News) -- South Korea's jailed ex-president Park Geun-hye has refused to end her boycott of hearings, taking medication for edema caused by her knee osteoarthritis and insisting a herniated disc may worsen her back pain, a criminal court in Seoul said Monday.
The court, citing a report from prison authorities, said Park has been walking slowly once a day for health care while refusing to appear in court for health and other reasons. The court vowed to try Park in absentia.
Park was indicted for abusing her status and power to coerce businessmen to donate money to nonprofit foundations controlled by her crony, Choi Soon-sil, in return for business favors. Since the first hearing was held on May 23 last year, Park has denied charges of bribery, abuse of authority, coercion and leaking government secrets.
Last year, she had skipped court hearings several times due to an ache in the toe on her left foot. At her last court appearance on October 16, Park declared that her legal battle has become meaningless, and her defense team boycotted resigned.
The ousted ex-president was additionally indicted for accepting some 3.65 billion won from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) between May 2013 and July 2016. Prosecutors claimed the NIS fund was used for private purposes.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
