A Seoul court on Tuesday ordered presidential chief of staff Chung Jin-suk to pay a fine of 12 million won ($8,998) for defaming the honor of the late President Roh Moo-hyun through a social media post, while overturning the initial ruling of a six-month prison term.

The charges against Chung stemmed from a Facebook post he made in September 2017, in which he claimed that Roh's wife, Kwon Yang-sook, and their son had received bribes from a businessperson closely associated with Roh.

In the ruling, the Seoul Central District Court noted that Chung was guilty of delivering false information with the intent to defame the victims, and highlighted that there were no grounds for Chung to believe such accusations were true.

The court added that the post appeared to be a "malicious and excessively reckless" attack and could not be considered as being made in favor of the public interest.

The court, however, overturned the initial six-month prison sentence, acknowledging that Chung had repeatedly expressed remorse.

In August 2023, a district court imposed the prison term on Chung, arguing that he had "crossed the line." It was heavier than the 5 million won fine sought by prosecutors. Chung was not taken into custody.

Shortly after Tuesday's verdict, Chung told reporters that he "respects" the court's decision but did not comment on whether he would appeal the ruling.

Roh, a liberal politician who ran the country from 2003 to 2008, leaped to his death from a cliff behind his retirement home in 2009 amid a corruption investigation involving his family and aides. (Yonhap)