Former South Korean First Lady Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Accepting Luxury Items

JAKARTA - Former First Lady Kim Keon Hee was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison on Wednesday, after being found guilty of accepting luxury gifts from figures associated with the Unification Church in exchange for political favors.

The ruling came after the husband, former President Yoon Suk Yeol, was sentenced to five years in prison in a separate case on January 16.

This marks the first time in Korean history that a former president and his spouse have both been found guilty.

A judge at the Seoul Central District Court ordered Kim to pay a fine of more than 12 million won, as well as the seizure of a Graff diamond necklace that had been seized by an investigative team under special counsel Min Joong-ki.

Kim was charged with three counts: participating in a scheme to manipulate Deutsch Motors' stock price between 2009 and 2012; violating the Political Funds Law by receiving free polls from political broker Myung Tae-gyun between June 2021 and March 2022; and receiving expensive gifts from Unification Church figures in exchange for political favors. Of all that, the court only admitted part of the charge of trading influence, which was related to the luxury goods he received in July 2022.

Prosecutors accused Jeon Seong-bae, a shaman widely known as "Geonjin Beopsa," of giving Kim a Chanel bag worth 8 million won on behalf of Yun Young-ho, who was then the head of the world headquarters of the Unification Church, in April 2022.

In July of the same year, Kim received another Chanel bag worth 12 million won and a Graff diamond necklace worth 62 million won.

However, the court ruled that only the bag and necklace given in July 2022 were the result of a crime, while the gift in April did not meet the legal threshold.

During a phone conversation on July 15, 2022, Kim reportedly told Yun that he was trying to help the Unification Church at the government level and asked him to continue to support him, stressing that economic, cultural, and other achievements should not be hindered.

The judges said this showed he understood that church projects depended on government support and that he was willing to use his position to provide support in return for the luxury items.

However, the court found him not guilty of the Chanel bag received in April 2022, saying that although Kim thanked Yun for his support during the presidential election, their conversation was just a normal expression of gratitude and not a concrete request and promise that would constitute criminal corruption.

"The president is given state authority under the Constitution, and the first lady, as the president's spouse, can exert a huge influence from the closest position and serve as a symbolic figure representing the nation together with the president," said Judge Woo In-sung, launching The Korea Times (28/1).

"Nevertheless, the defendant failed to refuse and instead accepted expensive luxury goods given in connection with the request of the Unification Church, and was busy beautifying himself. The defendant abused his position as a means to pursue personal gain," he said.

The court acquitted him of the charge of stock manipulation, saying that although he was aware that his funds and shares could be used for price manipulation, his behavior did not include an active perpetrator as required for a criminal sentence.

The judge also rejected the charges related to the Political Fund Law, saying the provision of Myung's poll results to the former presidential couple and the first lady could not be considered a financial advantage.

The court added that it was also difficult to conclude that Myung had been promised a party nomination for his close associate Kim Young-sun, a former member of parliament, in return for carrying out the survey.

Wearing a face mask, Kim Keon Hee listened to the verdict without looking directly at the judge's table and remained almost motionless as the sentence was read.

After the court announced the prison sentence and the seizure order, he bowed his head, had a brief discussion with his lawyer, and then left the courtroom.