Former First Lady Kim Keon Hee Appears in Court for Detention Warrant Hearing

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s wife, Kim Keon Hee, attended a detention warrant hearing on Tuesday.

Kim arrived at the courthouse approximately 40 minutes before the scheduled 10:10 a.m. start time.

When questioned by reporters about various allegations—including receiving luxury gifts and requests for watches—Kim remained silent, her head bowed.

Judge Jung Jae-wook, who oversees detention warrants, commenced the hearing promptly at 10:10 a.m.

The special prosecution team, composed of eight members including Deputy Prosecutor Han Moon-hyuk, submitted an extensive 848-page document to the court.

This document is notably 40 times longer than the original detention warrant application.

Kim’s legal team, comprising attorneys Yoo Jeong-hwa, Chae Myung-sung, and Choi Ji-woo, prepared approximately 100 pages of materials for her defense.

The special prosecution team filed for Kim’s detention on August 7, citing violations of the Capital Markets Act and bribery charges.

Their investigation, concluded on August 6, covered five major allegations against Kim. These include stock price manipulation involving Deutsche Motors, interference in political nominations, and receiving high-value gifts linked to controversial religious figures.

Given Kim’s denial of most allegations, prosecutors fear potential evidence tampering and collusion with associates.

The 22-page detention warrant details violations of the Capital Markets Act, Political Funds Act, and bribery statutes.

Prosecutors allege that Kim colluded in stock manipulation, resulting in illicit gains of approximately 810 million KRW (about 583,000 USD) through 3,800 instances of market manipulation.

Additionally, she is accused of receiving free public opinion surveys valued at about 270 million KRW (about 194,000 USD) between June 2021 and March 2022, related to political nomination processes.

Further allegations involve accepting luxury gifts worth around 82 million KRW (about 59,000 USD) between April and July 2022, connected to figures associated with the Unification Church.

If the court approves Kim’s detention, it would mark an unprecedented situation in which both a former president and their spouse are in custody.