The wife of South Korea’s ousted former president has been sentenced to 20 months in prison for accepting bribes from the controversial Unification Church.
However, the court cleared Kim Keon Hee, 52, of charges of manipulating stock prices and receiving free opinion polls from a political broker ahead of the 2022 presidential election, won by her husband Yoon Suk Yeol.
Yoon was previously sentenced to five years in prison for abuse of power and obstruction of justice in connection with his failed bid for martial law in 2024.
This is the first time in South Korean history that a former presidential couple has been sentenced at the same time.
On Wednesday, a judge at the Seoul Central District Court ruled that Kim had “abused his position to pursue personal gain.”
“More [one’s] “In this position, the more one must consciously guard against such behavior… The accused did not reject the solicitations and was preoccupied with his appearance,” the judge said.
A team of special advisers appointed to the case said Kim received 80 million won in gifts, including a Graff diamond necklace and several Chanel handbags, from the Unification Church between April and July 2022, in exchange for business and political favors.
The team had requested a 15-year prison sentence and a 2 billion won fine for the three charges heard today – of which Kim was found guilty on one of them – but the judge noted that Kim was not the one who asked for or solicited the bribes, and that she had “no significant criminal record.”
She was, however, ordered to repay 12.85 million won ($9,000; £6,500) in cash and the court also ordered the diamond necklace to be confiscated.
Kim was also indicted for her alleged involvement in a scheme to recruit Unification Church followers into the conservative People Power Party of which her husband was a member, and for accepting gifts in exchange for government appointments. The court has not yet heard these cases.
Additional reporting by Leehyun Choi in Seoul
