Jeong Myeong-seok, the leader of a controversial religious organization, the Jesus Morning Star, has lodged an appeal against a recent ruling over sexual offenses.
Jeong appealed to the Daejeon District Court on Friday to reconsider the ruling handed down that day that ordered the 78-year-old to be put behind bars for 23 years for sexual assault and molestation.
He was convicted of raping and sexually assaulting two female followers of foreign nationality and a South Korean female follower between February 2018 and September 2021.
In the previous court hearing, prosecutors demanded an imprisonment of 30 years for Jeong. The prosecution has not filed an appeal.
Jeong, who refers to himself as the Messiah, or the second coming of Jesus, was released in 2018 after serving 10 years in prison for raping a number of female followers and embezzling funds from JMS. (Yonhap)
