SEOUL, South Korea -- Disgraced South Korean cloning scientist Hwang Woo-suk yesterday was found guilty by a Seoul court of embezzling from his stem cell research fund and illegally buying human embryos.

The court also ruled that Dr. Hwang, 56, who became a national hero after he claimed to be the first to successfully clone human stem cells, had partially fabricated the results of his research. He was given a two-year suspended sentence provided that he has no further legal trouble for the next three years.

"He feels deeply sorry that this case elicited so much criticism in the scientific field and shocked the public. ... His wrongdoing is not minor, but does not merit the severe punishment of a prison sentence," the Seoul Central District Court said in the verdict.

Immediately after Dr. Hwang disclosed the surprising findings in his stem cell research in 2004, many medical experts and patients hoped that the breakthrough might lead to remedies for diseases such as cancer.

The South Korean government touted him as a national hero and announced plans to set up a committee to promote Dr. Hwang for a Nobel Prize.

Time magazine in 2004 named him as one of the world's 100 most influential people. The following year, Dr. Hwang's scientific team at Seoul National University created Snuppy, the first known cloned dog.

But a local television report raised ethical questions about the human eggs used for his research, and eventually his two published papers on the research were found to be fabricated. As suddenly as he gained fame, he became embroiled in scandal.

Dr. Hwang made a public apology and eventually was fired from his professorship at the university. "I ask for your forgiveness," he told a nationally televised news conference in his first public appearance after a university investigation confirmed that his research data had been manipulated. "I feel so miserable that it's difficult even to say sorry."

Despite the revelations of research fraud, Dr. Hwang's career didn't appear to be shattered. He founded a research institute and published several more papers. His team joined with a provincial government to launch a hog-cloning project.

Dr. Hwang worked closely with University of Pittsburgh researcher Gerald Schatten on his two papers found to have fabrications, and Dr. Schatten was a co-author of the second paper.

In 2006, a University of Pittsburgh research integrity committee exonerated Dr. Schatten of scientific misconduct, but said he had engaged in "misbehavior" by allowing himself to be listed as a paper co-author without having full knowledge of research on which it was based.

Dr. Schatten is director of the Pittsburgh Development Center at UPMC's Magee-Womens Research Institute, which focuses on the science of fertility and birth, and is a well-known primate researcher. The South Korean scandal damaged Dr. Schatten's reputation. He could not be reached for comment yesterday.

In 2006, prosecutors charged Dr. Hwang with fraud and embezzlement of more than $700,000 and sought a four-year prison term. Dr. Hwang underwent more than 40 court hearings over three years before yesterday's verdict and sentencing.

A few days before the verdict, dozens of lawmakers filed petitions asking the court for leniency in his case. Hundreds of supporter were waiting outside the court yesterday, as they had done throughout the recent hearings.

"Dr. Hwang has conducted his research tirelessly under terrible conditions," said Hyeon Sang-hwan, a veterinary professor at the Sooam Biotech Research Foundation, founded by Dr. Hwang. "And he will continue to do so, thanks to a great amount of public support."

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