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Ex-First Lady Kim Keon Hee and Former Prime Minister Indicted in Expanding Probe of Yoon Suk Yeol’s Administration
A special prosecution team led by Min Joong-ki has indicted Kim Keon Hee, wife of jailed former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol, on charges of violating financial market regulations, breaching political funding laws, and accepting bribes. Her indictment comes just two weeks after a court approved her arrest.
The announcement on Friday coincided with charges filed against former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, widening investigations into corruption and the failed martial law declaration that ultimately led to Yoon’s downfall.
South Korea plunged into its most severe political crisis in decades on December 3, 2024, when Yoon attempted to enforce martial law to bypass an opposition-controlled legislature. Although the decree lasted only hours, it triggered months of political deadlock, foreign policy disruptions, and economic instability. Yoon was impeached in April and later rearrested following his conservative party’s defeat in a snap presidential election.
The new administration appointed three special prosecutors to investigate both the martial law episode and corruption scandals tied to Yoon and his inner circle.
A second team, headed by Cho Eun-suk, charged former Prime Minister Han with aiding Yoon’s martial law declaration—considered by investigators as attempted rebellion—alongside falsifying records, destroying documents, and committing perjury.
Dozens of officials have been implicated in the widening probe, including former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun, accused of conspiring with Yoon to deploy troops to the National Assembly in a failed bid to block lawmakers from overturning martial law.
Separately, over 60 people were indicted for rioting at a Seoul court in January when judges issued Yoon’s first arrest warrant. In May, prosecutors charged Yoon with abuse of authority.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the latest indictment against the former president was issued without an arrest warrant. He now faces additional charges of abuse of authority and obstruction of rights, linked to orders he allegedly gave to military and police units to block access to the National Assembly during the December 2024 martial law attempt.
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