SEOUL (Realist English). Kim Keon Hee, wife of South Korea’s jailed former president Yoon Suk Yeol, has been arrested as prosecutors move to charge her with a range of alleged crimes, including bribery, stock manipulation, and interfering in a political nomination.
The Seoul Central District Court approved a special prosecutor’s request for her arrest late Tuesday, citing a risk of evidence destruction. Kim is being held at a detention facility in southern Seoul, separate from her husband, and is due to face further questioning on Thursday. Prosecutors can detain her for up to 20 days before filing formal charges.
The arrest marks the first time in South Korea’s history that both a former president and first lady have been jailed simultaneously over criminal allegations. Yoon, a conservative, was impeached in April and rearrested last month over his brief imposition of martial law in December, a failed power move that came amid political gridlock with the liberal-led legislature.
Special Prosecutor Min Joong-ki, appointed in June by liberal President Lee Jae Myung, is leading three investigations into the Yoon presidency — the martial law episode, the allegations against Kim, and the 2023 drowning death of a marine that critics say Yoon’s government tried to cover up.
Investigators suspect Kim and Yoon exerted undue influence on the conservative People Power Party to nominate a specific candidate in a 2022 by-election at the request of election broker Myung Tae-kyun, who is accused of conducting rigged opinion polls that may have aided Yoon’s primary campaign. Kim is also linked to allegations of accepting luxury gifts via intermediaries, involvement in a stock manipulation scheme tied to a BMW dealership, and connections to business favors allegedly arranged through close associates.
This week, investigators arrested one of Kim’s aides upon his return from Vietnam, suspecting he used his access to the former first lady to secure millions in investment for his struggling company. They also raided a construction firm over claims its chairman purchased a $43,000 luxury necklace believed to be worn by Kim during a 2022 Europe trip with Yoon — allegedly tied to a political appointment for the chairman’s son-in-law. Kim denies the accusations, insisting the necklace was a borrowed imitation.
While in office, Yoon repeatedly blocked legislative attempts to investigate his wife, calling the claims politically motivated. His downfall came after lawmakers overrode his martial law decree on Dec. 3, 2024, impeached him on Dec. 14, and secured his removal by the Constitutional Court in April.
Yoon now faces trial on rebellion and other charges and has resisted answering investigators’ questions about Kim. The couple’s legal troubles have further deepened South Korea’s long-standing pattern of presidencies ending in scandal and prosecution.
