Seoul: A court sentenced former first lady Kim Keon Hee to one year and eight months in prison Wednesday after finding her guilty of accepting luxury gifts from the Unification Church that had sought business favors.
According to Yonhap News Agency, special counsel Min Joong-ki's team had initially sought a 15-year prison term for Kim, the wife of ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who stands trial on an insurrection charge related to his martial law bid in 2024.
The Seoul Central District Court, however, handed down a significantly shorter prison term for Kim, acquitting her of charges of involvement in a stock price manipulation scheme and violating the Political Funds Act. Additionally, the court ordered Kim to forfeit 12.8 million won (US$9,000). With this ruling, Kim and her husband have become the country's first former presidential couple to be imprisoned with criminal convictions.
After the verdict, the special counsel team expressed its intent to appeal, citing difficulty in accepting the court's decision. Meanwhile, Kim's legal representatives commented on the severity of the prison term concerning the charges of accepting money and valuables, indicating they would consider their next steps, including a possible appeal.
Kim's remarks, reportedly made during a meeting with her legal team at her detention center, reflected her acceptance of the court's decision. "I humbly accept the court's stern words today and will not regard them lightly," she was quoted as saying, adding her apologies for causing concern.
The court found Kim guilty of receiving a Chanel bag and a high-end Graff necklace from a Unification Church official who had sought business favors in July 2022. However, it did not recognize another Chanel bag received by Kim in April 2022 as a bribe, due to the lack of specific requests made at that time.
"The defendant misused her position as a means to seek profit," the court stated, highlighting Kim's failure to reject luxury goods tied to the Unification Church's requests and her focus on personal adornment.
Kim faced charges of conspiring with a former head of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer in South Korea, and a close associate to manipulate the company's stock price, allegedly making 810 million won in illegal profits between 2010 and 2012. She was also indicted for violating the Political Funds Act by allegedly receiving free opinion polls valued at 270 million won, along with her husband, from a self-proclaimed power broker ahead of the 2022 presidential election.
Additionally, the former first lady was charged with conspiring with a shaman to receive luxury gifts worth 80 million won from a Unification Church official in 2022, which were accompanied by business favor requests. Despite her denial of all charges since being held in custody from August, the court recognized that Kim may have been aware of the stock manipulation scheme but could not confirm her direct involvement as an accomplice.
The court also acknowledged that while Kim and her husband had received free opinion polls from the power broker, these were not considered to have economically benefited the couple as they were not exclusively provided to them. Yoon has been sentenced to five years in prison on charges related to his martial law bid in 2024 and is currently facing trial on additional charges, including leading an insurrection through his martial law decree.