Breaking down the case against former first lady Kim Keon Hee

Kim Keon Hee exits the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul after completing a hearing session for her arrest warrant on Aug. 12. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

[EXPLAINER]
 
Kim Keon Hee, the controversial first lady accused of influence peddling, lost nearly all her power and prestige overnight and is now behind bars for bribery and corruption charges.
 
Kim’s arrest marks the first time in Korean history that a first lady has been detained, following the footsteps of her husband, ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol. It is also the first time a former presidential couple is simultaneously behind bars, though Yoon is detained separately for his Dec. 3 attempt to impose martial law.  
 
On Aug. 12, the Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant against Kim over charges of involvement in a stock manipulation scheme, election meddling and bribery by accepting high-end items. Kim has since been held in solitary confinement in Seoul Southern Detention Center in Guro District in western Seoul, except when summoned for questioning. 
 

Related Article

• Kim Keon Hee arrested, marking first time an ex-presidential couple is simultaneously jailed

• 'First Lady' documentary to debut amid political turmoil

• Yoon apologizes for causing 'public concern' over first lady allegations, but decries wife's 'demonization'

As of Wednesday night, Kim had attended questioning by the special counsel team three times: once before her detention and twice after being taken into custody. However, throughout the interrogations, she has remained mostly silent, occasionally saying, "I don't know" or "I don't remember," according to the special counsel team. 
 
Kim faced numerous allegations after her husband, a former prosecutor, took office in May 2022, and despite her promises to stay out of the limelight, accusations and scandals continued to dog her.
 
What are the charges against the ex-first lady?
 

Kim Keon Hee, former first lady, center, attends her first questioning session at the headquarters of the special counsel team in central Seoul on Aug. 6. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

 
Kim is accused of violating the Capital Markets Act, the Political Funds Act and the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes. 
 
Specifically, she was suspected of masterminding a stock manipulation scheme involving Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer in Korea, from 2009 to 2012. The special counsel team — led by Min Joong-ki — believed that she pocketed 810 million won ($581,700) through roughly 3,700 instances of illegal trading.
 
The special counsel team also suspected that she illegally exerted her influence over the conservative People Power Party's nominations for the parliamentary by-elections in 2022 and general elections in 2020 and last year. Kim and Yoon were suspected of receiving public opinion polling — valued at 318 million won — for free from self-proclaimed power broker Myung Tae-kyun during the presidential campaign. In return, the couple pressured the PPP to nominate candidates for elections at Myung’s behest. 
 
She is also accused of receiving luxury jewelry and fashion items from entrepreneurs and the Unification Church through a shaman in exchange for business favors. In addition, the investigators assumed that she illegally intervened in the presidential office’s contracts and employment processes.  
 
What controversies did Kim face before becoming first lady?  
 

Kim Keon-hee, wife of the ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, delivers a public apology in Yeouido, western Seoul, in December 2021. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

 
Kim was surrounded by controversies even before her husband took office, such as allegations of working as a hostess before getting married, plagiarizing academic papers, illegal sponsorship and stock manipulations. 
 
She was accused of working as a nightclub hostess at a hotel in southern Seoul between the late 1990s and early 2000s under an alias, Julie. She denied such allegations, saying she had no time for such work due to her studies. Kim Myeong-shin was her legal name until 2008.  
 
Although Kim obtained her master's degree in art education from Sookmyung Women’s University in 1999, her thesis was found to be plagiarized in June this year. Accordingly, Sookmyung Women’s University canceled her master’s degree. So did Kookmin University, where she earned her doctorate, in July. 
 
She was accused of taking illegal sponsorships from Deutsch Motors between 2016 and 2019 for exhibitions hosted by her company, Covana Contents. However, in 2021, prosecutors did not indict her according to the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act because there was no legal provision applicable to the behavior of public servants' spouses. 
 
In December 2021, about three months before the election, Kim said she would “deeply repent” and take time to reflect on her past misdeeds, addressing another accusation of inflating her past career experiences. She also promised that she would avoid stirring political controversy in the future. At the time, Kim vowed to support her husband “quietly” if he became the president.  
 
How did her downfall come about?  

Kim Keon Hee holds a Cambodian body suffering with heart disease at his home in Cambodia during her visit to the country in Nov. 11 in 2022. [PRESDIENTIAL OFFICE]

 
Despite Yoon’s promise that the first lady would stay out of the limelight and play a reduced role, Kim continued to be plagued by scandals and public scrutiny during her time in the office.
 
She frequently appeared at public occasions with Yoon, such as overseas diplomatic visits. She also staged appearances alone without Yoon — a suicide prevention event on the Mapo Bridge in Seoul in September last year and a visit to the home of a pediatric heart patient in Cambodia in 2022.  
 
In September 2022, about four months after Yoon took office, Kim received a $2,200 light blue calfskin Lady Dior pouch from Korean American pastor Choi Jae-young. A video clip showing the pastor handing the purse to Kim was later released by liberal-leaning media outlet Voice of Seoul in November 2023.  
 
In political circles, Kim was reportedly referred to as “V0” and Yoon as “V1,” which suggested that Kim carried greater weight and wielded more influence in state affairs than the president.  
 
What are the luxury items Kim is accused of receiving?  

Bribery connection to the former first lady Kim Keon Hee [YUN YOUNG]

 
The jewelry and ritzy items she is accused of receiving include items from luxury designers such as Tiffany and Co., Van Cleef & Arpels and Chanel.
 
The investigators believed that Kim received a Van Cleef & Arpels diamond-studded white gold snowflake pendant, priced at 62 million won, as well as a brooch from Tiffany and Co. and a pair of earrings from Graff from Seohee Construction in 2022. The Van Cleef & Arpels pendant was seen around her neck during the 2022 NATO summit in Spain — her and Yoon’s first overseas duty. 
 

Then-President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and then-first lady Kim Keon Hee, attend a dining event with the Korean diaspora in Madrid, Spain, in June 2022. A Van Cleef & Arpels pendant, allegedly provided by Seohee Construction's chairman, is seen around Kim's neck. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

 
Kim also allegedly accepted a high-end Swiss-made Vacheron Constantin’s Historiques 1921 wristwatch from entrepreneur Seo Seong-bin, who ran a company importing robotic dogs, in September 2022. 
 
Another bundle of luxury designer handbags, a necklace adorned with diamonds and rare ginseng herbal extract from the Unification Church were also allegedly delivered to Kim. Specifically, Yoon Young-ho, a former head of the church, reportedly handed two Chanel bags worth 20 million won, a Pavé Butterfly Diamond Necklace from Graff worth 62 million won at the time and the herbal extract to Jeon Seong-bae, a shaman acquainted with Kim, between April and July of 2022. However, Kim has denied receiving the items.  
 
Who are the bribery suspects?
 

Kim Keon Hee is spotted wearing a Tiffany & Co. brooch during the trip to Spain for the NATO summit in June 2022. The accessory is reported to have been given by Seohee Construction. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
Seohee Construction's chairman Lee Bong-kwan said he delivered luxury diamond accessories to Kim in person at her residence in March 2022. In his written statement, Lee said the Van Cleef & Arpels pendant was given to Kim to celebrate her husband's victory in the election. He added that his son-in-law asked him to "seek job opportunities in the Yoon administration." Lee’s son-in-law was later appointed as the chief of staff to the prime minister in June 2022. 
 

Seo Seong-bin, a businessman who bought a luxury wristwatch on behalf of Kim Keon Hee, is seen in a photo provided by YTN. [YTN]

 
Seo Seong-bin, a businessman who allegedly gave Kim the luxury wristwatch, said Kim gave him 5 million won for the purchase. Despite an official price of around 50 million won at the time, Seo claimed that he paid 35 million in total through an exclusive discount opportunity. The investigators are reportedly assessing whether a Presidential Security Service contract to introduce robotic dogs through Seo’s company was predicated on Kim's acceptance. 
 
Although it has not been confirmed that Kim accepted gifts from the Unification Church, the investigators believed that her confidant, the shaman Jeon, liaised with the church and Kim to help the church obtain presidential support for its development in Cambodia and its drive to acquire news broadcaster YTN in 2022.
 

A Graff necklace suspected to have been provided by the Unification Church. The necklace is priced at 92.6 million won ($66,203). [GRAFF]

 
Kim’s close aide in the presidential office, surnamed Yoo, allegedly helped exchange the two Chanel bags from the Unification Church for three other handbags and one pair of Chanel shoes, after paying an extra 3 million won. Yet, the payment was reportedly covered by another third party — the wife of Kim’s graduate school classmate, who runs the interior design firm 21 GRAM. The interior design company undertook renovations of the Yongsan presidential office and residence based on a private contract without open and public bidding.  
 
Who else is involved in other charges?  
 

Lee Jong-ho, who managed Kim Keon Hee's bank account, attends a questioning session held by the special counsel team in central Seoul on July 30. [NEWS1]

 
Lee Jong-ho — a former chief of investment firm Blackpearl Invest who managed Kim’s bank account during the period of the alleged Deutsch Motors stock manipulation — was also suspected of meddling in a military investigation into the death of a young marine.
 
On July 19, 2023, Marine Lance Corporal Chae Su-geun drowned during a search and rescue mission following catastrophic floods. Lee allegedly prevented the military investigative body from pressing occupational negligence charges against then-Marine Corps 1st Division Commander Lim Seong-geun through his connection with Kim.  
 
Lee is also tied to another alleged stock price manipulation of Sambu Construction. The corporate share price quintupled — from 1,012 won to 5,500 won — following reports that the company would participate in reconstruction projects in war-torn Ukraine and Yoon's visit to Ukraine in mid-July. During the period, Lee’s wife allegedly pocketed some 20 million won through shares linked to Sambu Construction.
 

Kim Ye-sung, known to be Kim Keon Hee's ex-butler, attends a questioning session in central Seoul on Aug. 12. [NEWS1]

 
Kim Ye-sung, known to be Kim’s ex-butler, is also accused of swindling 3.3 billion won from the corporate fund of a rental car company, called “IMS Mobility,” which he founded. Kim was suspected of receiving 18.4 billion won in investment funds from major conglomerate companies through his connection with the former first lady. The involved major companies reportedly provided the fund in hopes of clearing pending legal and political issues in their businesses. However, Kim denied his knowledge of the investment at his first questioning session on Monday.  
 
What’s next for Kim?

Ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, waves his hand as he departs from his presidential residence in Yongsan District in central Seoul on April 11. His wife Kim Keon Hee is seen behind him in the car. [NEWS1]

 
Kim is set to attend her fourth questioning session on Thursday afternoon. Kim refused to participate in Wednesday’s questioning, citing poor health.
 
The special counsel team said Wednesday that the court extended Kim’s arrest until Aug. 31, an addition of 10 days in custody. The Criminal Procedure Act limits such an extension to a single time, with a maximum of 10 days. Unless prosecutors indict the suspect, they must be released.  
 
The legal provision to be applied by prosecutors remains a crucial factor in Kim's case — if she is indicted. Bribery charges typically applies to those holding public office who provide a benefit in exchange for the bribe. Thus, for Kim to be charged with bribery, it has to be established that the luxury brand gifts were received by Yoon as the perpetrator, and Kim was an accomplice who conspired with him. If the court acknowledges that the couple committed bribery of more than 30 million won, the punishment against them could be either prison sentences of 5 years or longer. 
 
 

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]