Former South Korean First Lady Kim Keon-hee in court over bribery and stock manipulation

Seoul [South Korea], September 24 (ANI): Former South Korean First Lady Kim Keon-hee appeared in court on Wednesday for the first hearing in a corruption trial linked to bribery and stock manipulation, Al Jazeera reported.

Kim, 53, wearing her inmate number 4398 and partially covering her face with a mask, was brought from the detention centre to the Seoul Central District Court. She has been in detention since August 12. During an identity check, Kim told the bench she was currently "unemployed" and did not want a jury trial, according to Al Jazeera.

She is the first spouse of a former president to stand trial in South Korea after being accused of violating the Capital Markets Act, the Political Funds Act, and a law on the acceptance of bribes for mediation.

The charge under the Capital Markets Act stems from allegations that Kim conspired with the former head of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer, and a close associate to manipulate the company's stock prices, generating 810 million won (USD 581,000) in profits between 2010 and 2012, Al Jazeera noted.

Her second charge relates to claims that she and her husband, ousted President Yoon Suk-yeol, received free opinion polls from a self-proclaimed power broker ahead of the 2021 elections, which Yoon went on to win. The trade-off, prosecutors allege, was securing the nomination of former People Power Party representative Kim Young-sun for a by-election that same year.

Kim also faces a corruption charge linked to allegations that she accepted luxury bags and jewellery from the Unification Church in 2022. The church's head, Han Hak-ja, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly bribing her, though both Han and the church have denied the claims, Al Jazeera reported. (ANI)

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