In an unprecedented turn of events, the wife of South Korea’s former president has been arrested on a slew of charges, marking the first time a former first lady has been jailed in the country’s history. Kim Keon Hee, the spouse of jailed ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol, was taken into custody after a court in Seoul issued a detention warrant. The court’s decision was based on the belief that she posed a risk of destroying evidence.
A Litany of Allegations
Kim is facing a variety of serious charges, including:
- Stock Manipulation: She is accused of earning over 800 million won (approximately $578,000 USD) from a price-rigging scheme involving the stocks of a local BMW dealership.
- Bribery: Prosecutors allege that she accepted bribes in the form of two Chanel bags and a diamond necklace from the controversial Unification Church in exchange for business favors.
- Illegal Influence Peddling: She is also accused of interfering with candidate nominations during parliamentary by-elections and general elections.
The allegations of stock manipulation reportedly occurred before her husband became president, but they continued to shadow his time in office.
A Nation’s Cycle of Political Scandal
South Korea has a well-documented history of its former leaders facing indictment and imprisonment, and this latest development adds another layer to that trend. However, this is the first time both a former president and a former first lady have been jailed simultaneously. Yoon himself was arrested in January to face trial over a failed martial law bid last year, which led to his ouster and the election of his rival, Lee Jae Myung, in June. Yoon had previously vetoed three opposition-led bills that would have initiated a special counsel investigation into the allegations against his wife. A special counsel was only established in June of this year after Lee Jae Myung became president. This new information highlights the intertwined nature of the legal troubles faced by both the former president and his wife.
