South Korea: Ex-first lady Kim handed longer graft sentence

An appeals court on Tuesday increased the corruption sentence for former first lady Kim Keon Hee to four years in jail, more than doubling her sentence after she unsuccessfully appealed a prior conviction.

Kim is the wife of jailed former South Korean Preisdent Yoon Suk Yeol, who faces various convictions and charges connected to him trying to impose martial law in December 2024, only to be impeached and suspended within weeks and removed from office and charged within months. 

While still in office, Yoon had repeatedly used his presidential veto to block investigations into his wife's alleged misconduct, which preceded his ill-fated efforts to impose what public prosecutors portray as a coup. 

What crimes led to Kim's jail sentence? 

The appeals court found that Kim had participated in manipulating the price of a thinly-traded Korean stock — Deutsch Motors — with multiple traders. It reversed a lower court's ruling in February that had acquitted her of that charge. 

It also found that Kim accepted two Chanel bags and a Graff necklace, worth around 80 million won (roughly €46,000 or $55,000) in total.

They were given to her by the Unification Church, and the court ruled she knew that the controversial religious organization would expect political favors for its overseas business in return. 

Both Kim and prosecutors had appealed the previous sentence, with Kim contesting the conviction and prosecutors arguing she should not have been acquitted of any charges. 

"The court sentences the defendant to four years in prison and imposes a 50 million won fine," the court said in a televised verdict, also ordering the confiscation of the necklace. It said her prior clean criminal record was taken into account in the sentencing. 

"Kim exerted her influence as first lady and committed ‌the bribery," the lead judge said. "She damaged public trust in government transparency and caused ‌a ​rift in public opinion over national affairs."

Kim was also found guilty of illegally backing a candidate in a 2022 by-election but the appellate court cleared her of separate charges of breaching election law. 

Her lawyers told the AFP news agency that they would appeal to the Supreme Court. 

A small group of supporters gathered outside the courtroom on Tuesday, putting up a large photo of the nationalist president and his wife and waving scarves and banners with slogans like "Yoon, again," "Make Korea Great Again" and "Reset Korea." 

Early taste of scandal for Yoon, prosecuted after martial law fiasco

Kim, known among other things for her efforts to ban Korea's controversial dog meat trade, featured in several scandals while her husband was in office. 

Hidden camera footage of her accepting a luxury Dior handbag first emerged in 2023, further buffeting her husband, who had been elected as president the previous year. 

The scandal contributed to Yoon's party failing to secure a majority in April 2024 general elections. 

The opposition used its majority to put forward three bills seeking investigations into the allegations surrounding Kim, each of which Yoon vetoed. His last veto was issued in November 2024, just a week before he declared martial law. 

This led to his impeachment and suspension later that December, and by early April, he was formally removed from office and various criminal investigations started ramping up. 

Yoon was handed a life sentence in February, in just one of several cases against him, but he plans to appeal. He maintains that he was acting in the country's best interests and accuses his political rivals of collusion with North Korea. 

South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol sentenced to life in prison

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Edited by: Alex Berry