Former first lady sentenced to 7 years in prison in South Korea

A court in Seoul sentenced former first lady Kim Keon Hee to 7 years in prison for receiving expensive gifts and appointing certain people to positions in return.

Yonhap writes about this.

Special prosecutor Min Joon Kiʼs team had requested 7.5 years in prison, saying the former first lady "repeatedly used her official status for personal transactions".

Kim Keon Hee was arrested on August 13, 2025. She and former President Yoon Seok Yeol became the first former presidential spouses to be detained at the same time.

The investigation believes that she was involved in a stock price manipulation scheme involving BMW dealer “Deutsch Motors” in South Korea from 2009 to 2012, interfered in the nomination of candidates in the 2022 parliamentary by-elections and the 2024 general election, and also received luxurious gifts from the Unification Church through a shaman in exchange for business services.

During interrogation on August 6, 2025, she apologized, calling herself a "worthless person" who had caused concern among people. However, she denied all the accusations.

• Former South Korean President Yoon Seok Yeol was also sentenced to life in prison for imposing martial law on December 3, 2024, which lasted about six hours but sparked a severe internal crisis. In June 2026, Yeol was given an additional 30 years in prison for ordering the launch of drones into North Korea in October 2024.
• The court concluded that by launching the drones, Yoon Seok Yeol wanted to create a pretext for martial law and provoke Pyongyang to respond.

Author: Khrystyna Pitsuriak

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