South Korea court sends ex-first lady to prison for bribery

A South Korean court has sentenced former first lady Kim Keon Hee to one year and eight months in jail after finding her guilty of accepting Chanel bags and a diamond pendant from Unification Church officials in return for political favours.

The Seoul Central District Court, on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, cleared Kim, the wife of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol who was ousted from office in 2025, on charges of stock price manipulation and violating the political funds act.

Prosecutors will appeal against the two not-guilty verdicts, Reuters reported.

The ruling, which can also be appealed by the former first lady, comes amid a series of trials following investigations into Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law in 2024 and related scandals involving the once-powerful couple.

The position of first lady does not come with any formal power allowing involvement in state affairs, but she is a symbolic figure representing the country, the lead judge of a three-justice bench said.

“A person who was in such a position might not always be a role model, but the person must not be a bad example to the public,” he said in the ruling.

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The court ordered her to pay a 12.8 million won ($8,990) fine and ordered the confiscation of the diamond necklace. Kim has been held in detention since August while she was being investigated by a team led by a special prosecutor.

Prosecutors had demanded 15 years in jail and fines of 2.9 billion won over all the accusations she faced.

The court cleared Kim on charges of manipulating stock prices and violating political funding laws.

Kim had denied all the charges. Her lawyer said the team would review the ruling and decide whether to appeal the bribery conviction.

The Unification Church said the gifts were delivered to her without expecting anything. Its leader Han Hak-ja, who is also on trial, has denied that she directed it to bribe Kim.

The Star