South Korean court orders arrest of wife of jailed ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol
In granting a special prosecutor's request for an arrest warrant near midnight, the Seoul Central District Court said Kim Keon Hee poses a risk of destroying evidence.
The investigation into Kim is one of three special prosecutor probes launched under Seoul's new liberal government targeting the presidency of Yoon, a conservative who was removed from office in April and rearrested last month over his brief imposition of martial law in December.
While Yoon's self-inflicted downfall extended a decades-long run of South Korean presidencies ending badly , he and Kim are the first presidential couple to be simultaneously arrested over criminal allegations.
Yoon's surprising yet poorly planned power grab on Dec. 3 came amid a seemingly routine standoff with the liberals, who he described as 'anti-state' forces abusing their legislative majority to block his agenda. Some political opponents have questioned whether Yoon's actions were at least partly motivated by growing allegations against his wife, which hurt his approval ratings and gave political ammunition to his rivals.
Kim did not speak to reporters as she arrived at the Seoul court Tuesday for an hours-long hearing on the warrant request. She will be held at a detention center in southern Seoul, separate from the facility holding Yoon.
The investigation team led by Special Prosecutor Min Joong-ki, who was appointed in June by new liberal President Lee Jae Myung, questioned Kim for about seven hours on Wednesday last week before deciding to seek her arrest.
Kim spoke briefly to reporters as she appeared for last week's questioning, issuing a vague apology for causing public concern but also hinting that she would deny the allegations against her, portraying herself as 'someone insignificant.'
Investigators suspect that Kim and Yoon exerted undue influence on the conservative People Power Party to nominate a specific candidate in a 2022 legislative by-election, allegedly at the request of election broker Myung Tae-kyun. Myung faces accusations of conducting free opinion surveys for Yoon using manipulated data that possibly helped him win the party's presidential primaries before his election as president.
Kim is separately linked to multiple corruption allegations, including claims that she received luxury gifts via a fortuneteller acting as an intermediary for a Unification Church official seeking business favors, and possible involvement in a stock price manipulation scheme tied to a local BMW dealership company.
While in office, Yoon repeatedly dismissed calls to investigate his wife , denouncing them as baseless political attacks.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
9 minutes ago
- CBS News
Man suspected of touching children at Mpls. park fired officer's holstered gun during arrest, charges say
A man police suspected of "touching children" at a Minneapolis park grabbed and fired an officer's gun during his arrest on Tuesday, charges state. The gun was holstered when the shooting occurred, and no one was seriously injured, police said. The man is charged with second-degree assault and disarming a peace officer, a criminal complaint filed Thursday shows. Charging documents said officers responded to Mueller Park after a caller reported someone touching children inappropriately. One officer found a man matching the description of the suspect in a nearby alley. The complaint states he "refused to comply and actively and physically resisted" the officer. The two fell to the ground during the struggle, at which point the officer used his Taser. "At some point during the altercation, the defendant was able to get his finger into the trigger guard and discharge the weapon," the complaint states. The man kept resisting, but was eventually arrested with the help of multiple officers, investigators said. In an interview with police, the man allegedly said he was upset about the Taser and wanted to fire a warning shot. He later said he was going "f*** [the officer's] life up," the complaint states, then mimed firing a gun while saying, "f*** you, f*** your job, lose your family." The man is in custody. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara previously said law enforcement knew the suspect, who has a history of assault and criminal sexual conduct. Note: The video above originally aired Aug. 12, 2025.
News24
9 minutes ago
- News24
South Korea's Lee Jae Myung offers North Korea olive branch: ‘North and South are not enemies'
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung is working to build trust with North Korea. Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, said the North did not want to improve ties with the South. Liberation Day on 15 August is the only holiday both countries celebrate. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung vowed on Friday to 'respect' North Korea's political system and build 'military trust', a day after Pyongyang said it had no interest in improving relations with Seoul. Lee has pledged to reach out to the nuclear-armed North and pursue dialogue without preconditions since his election in June - a reversal from his hawkish predecessor. Speaking at an event marking the anniversary of liberation from Japanese rule, Lee said the South Korean government 'will take consistent measures to substantially reduce tensions and restore trust' with the North. 'We affirm our respect for the North's current system,' said Lee, adding Seoul had 'no intention of engaging in hostile acts'. 'I hope that North Korea will reciprocate our efforts to restore trust and revive dialogue,' he said. North and South are not enemies. Lee Jae Myung Lee's speech comes a day after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, said the North has 'no will to improve relations' with the South. She also denied reports that North Korea was removing propaganda loudspeakers. The South's military said in June that the two countries had halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarised zone, adding last week that it had detected North Korean troops dismantling loudspeakers on the frontier. Friday's 15 August anniversary of liberation from Japan is the only public holiday celebrated in both North and South Korea, according to Seoul's National Institute for Unification Education. KCNA via KNS/AFP In Pyongyang, North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un also made a speech at a liberation day celebration, urging the nation to overcome 'the challenges facing the DPRK for the great powerful country', using the North's official acronym. However, in an unusual move for a Liberation Day address, he made no mention of South Korea or its 'enemies'. The speech was before a Russian delegation to Pyongyang, including the speaker of the Duma, who read a congratulatory letter sent to Kim by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kim's speech was a 'stark contrast' to his sister's recent 'fiery statements', Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul told AFP. 'There were no messages aimed at South Korea or the United States, no references to enemies or hostile states, and no provocative mentions of nuclear forces,' said Yang. 'The intention would be to closely observe the moves of neighbouring countries in the near term, including President Lee Jae Myung's Liberation Day address,' he added.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Second senior Chinese diplomat detained for questioning, sources say
BEIJING (Reuters) -A deputy to a prominent Chinese diplomat being questioned by authorities was also detained, three people with knowledge of the matter said, a further sign of uncertainty in the top echelons of China's diplomacy. Sun Haiyan, a senior diplomat and former ambassador to Singapore, was detained in early August around the time Liu Jianchao, widely seen as a potential foreign minister candidate, was taken in for questioning, two of the people said. Sun, the first woman to serve as a deputy head of the Communist Party's International Department, was detained by Chinese authorities in connection with the questioning of Liu, the sources said. None of the sources knew the basis of the questioning of either diplomat. The sources requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. The detention of Liu, who leads the International Department, marked the highest-level disappearance of a diplomat since China ousted its former foreign minister and President Xi Jinping's protege, Qin Gang, in 2023, following an unexplained public absence. His detention followed a work trip to Singapore, South Africa and Algeria. His house was searched in early August. The disappearance of Sun alongside the highly visible Liu, adds to questions about China's foreign policy establishment at a time of rising tensions with Washington around trade and geopolitical influence. China's State Council Information Office, which handles media queries for the government, and the International Department did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Reuters could not verify if both Sun and Liu were still being detained. Neither could be reached for comment. Both their profiles remain on the International Department's website. Sun's last public appearance was on August 1, when she attended a reception hosted by Nepal's embassy in Beijing. Sun, 53, was stationed in Singapore between May 2022 and July 2023. When she left her post, she hosted a 500-person reception at a luxury Singapore hotel, according to Chinese news reports. She joined the International Department in 1997, where she served in a wide range of roles, including spokesperson and head of the bureau responsible for ties with Southeast Asian countries. She also served as a district Party Committee official in the city of Zibo, Shandong province, in 2008. Originally from Hebei province, Sun holds a doctorate in law from Peking University, having also studied at Japan's Kyushu University.
