25.04.17.Today News : '81-year-old' Jang Young-Ja gets 1 year in prison for fraud / Confirmed ‘0’ medical school enrollment for Class of 2026

1. '81-year-old' Jang Young-Ja gets 1 year in prison for fraud

Jang Young-ja, 81, who became infamous in the 1980s for a promissory note fraud scheme worth 640 billion KRW, earning the nicknames “the scammer of the century” and “big spender,” has once again received a prison sentence—this time for issuing forged checks worth more than 15 billion KRW.

This marks her fifth prison term, and including previous incarceration, she will have served a total of 34 years.

According to the Supreme Court on the 17th, the 2nd Division of the Supreme Court (Presiding Justice Park Young-jae) on March 21 upheld the lower court’s ruling, which sentenced Jang to one year in prison for using forged financial instruments.

In July 2017, Jang signed an agricultural supply contract with CEO “A” of an agricultural products company at a hotel in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and handed over a forged check worth 15.42 billion KRW as an advance payment. Jang reportedly told A, “I’m old now and just want to quietly work in the agricultural sector and rest.”

The trial court initially ruled her not guilty, stating it was hard to prove she knowingly used a forged check. However, the appellate court sentenced her to one year in prison in January, citing a similar previous offense just one month earlier where she gave someone else a forged check to be cashed. Both checks had the same amount (15.42 billion KRW), had sequential serial numbers, and were issued at the same location, leading the court to conclude that the crimes followed the same pattern.

Jang appealed the ruling, but the Supreme Court rejected the appeal, confirming the lower court’s decision.

Jang, a relative of former President Chun Doo-hwan, was previously sentenced to 15 years in prison in 1983 along with her husband, former Deputy Director of the KCIA Lee Chul-hee, for leading a 640 billion KRW promissory note scam. That amount was nearly 10% of the government’s annual budget at the time and was labeled “the biggest financial fraud in Korean history.”

Jang has since been involved in several other fraud cases involving hundreds of billions of KRW. In 2015, she was indicted for fraudulently obtaining about 600 million KRW by claiming she needed money to donate her husband’s convertible bonds in Samsung Everland to a foundation. The Supreme Court confirmed a 4-year prison sentence in 2020, and she was released in early 2022 after completing her term.

One-line summary : Jang Young-ja, 81, has received her fifth prison sentence—one year—for issuing forged checks worth over 15 billion KRW.

---

---

2. Confirmed ‘0’ medical school enrollment for Class of 2026

The 2026 medical school admission quota has been finalized at 3,058 students, the same number as before the planned expansion.

This decision reverses the government’s February 2023 announcement to increase the quota by 2,000 to a total of 5,058 students—effectively returning to the 2024 level just over a year later.

Though medical students have not returned to class at the level the government required, the Ministry of Education decided to heed the calls from university presidents and deans for urgent normalization of medical education, finalizing the 2026 medical school quota at 3,058.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Ju-ho made the announcement on the 17th at the Government Complex in Seoul during a briefing on the adjustment of the 2026 medical school quota.

Attending the briefing were co-chairs Yang Oh-bong and Lee Hae-woo of the Council for Medical School Advancement (comprising presidents of 40 universities with medical schools), as well as Lee Jong-tae, chairman of the Korea Association of Medical Colleges (KAMC).

This announcement follows a government statement made on March 7, promising to revert the quota to 3,058 for 2026 if all medical students returned to class by March.

Although nearly all medical students have formally registered or returned from leaves of absence, actual class attendance remains low. Average attendance across all years at the 40 medical schools is only 25.9%.

According to the Ministry of Education, lecture participation is about 22% in pre-med and 29% in medical coursework. These statistics are based on data from roughly 19,760 enrolled students, including those at risk of failing due to academic issues.

By grade level, fourth-year students showed the highest participation at 35.7%. Geographically, schools in Seoul had an average attendance rate of 40%, compared to 22% at regional universities. Only four medical schools had attendance rates over 50%.

The ministry acknowledged that the current participation levels fall short of what the Council and Association initially proposed in March.

However, it explained that the Council had requested the government to finalize the 2026 quota at the pre-expansion level due to the ongoing educational crisis stemming from more than a year of conflict between the medical community and the government.

Though some members of the Council argued that the condition of full return was unmet and the 3,058 quota should not be accepted, consensus was reached during an emergency meeting to prioritize normalization by encouraging student participation.

The KAMC also recommended fixing the quota to provide an opportunity for hesitant students to return and to accelerate the normalization of medical education.

Minister Lee emphasized, “We respect and accept the recommendations made by the university presidents and deans, who bear the responsibility of higher education.” He added, “By stabilizing the admission quota, we aim to quickly eliminate uncertainties in next year’s college admissions and work closely with universities to fully restore medical education.”

The government also plans to revise the enforcement decree of the Higher Education Act to establish a legal foundation for this decision.

However, the government and the medical education community stressed that unlike last year, there will be no academic flexibility, and students who do not attend classes will face academic penalties such as failing the year.

Minister Lee concluded, “With today’s announcement, the debate over next year’s medical school admissions comes to an end. Now, we must all unite to restore medical education and reform Korea’s healthcare system for the future.”

One-line summary : Despite low class return rates among medical students, the government has finalized the 2026 medical school admission quota at the pre-expansion level of 3,058 students.