Seoul: A special counsel team is set to indict former first lady Kim Keon Hee on charges of corruption and bribery, marking her as the first spouse of a former president to stand trial under custody.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim, the wife of ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol, is implicated in stock manipulation schemes, interference in candidate nominations for the 2022 parliamentary by-elections and 2024 general elections, and receiving luxury gifts from the Unification Church via a shaman in exchange for business favors.
Special counsel Min Joong-ki's team arrested her on August 12 after obtaining a warrant for violations of the Capital Market Act, the Political Funds Act, and a law concerning the acceptance of bribes for mediation. The team plans to indict her with physical detention on Friday, just before her pretrial arrest period concludes.
Kim's indictment positions her and her husband as the first former presidential couple to be tried under arrest simultaneously, with Yoon also jailed and facing insurrection charges for his failed attempt to impose martial law in December.
Speculation arises over potential additional charges against Yoon, as both he and Kim are suspected of receiving complimentary opinion polls from a self-proclaimed power broker before the 2022 presidential election, in exchange for securing the nomination of former People Power Party Rep. Kim Young-sun for a parliamentary by-election that same year.
The special counsel team has interrogated Kim in person five times since her arrest, though she has mostly chosen to exercise her right to remain silent. The investigation scope has expanded since its initiation two months ago, with recent raids targeting individuals suspected of providing jewelry to Kim in exchange for personnel appointments or business favors, which could lead to further charges in the final indictment.