Former First Lady Kim Keon-hee, wife of former President Yoon Suk-yeol, arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the morning of August 12 for a detention hearing. / Reporter Kwon Do-hyun

Former First Lady Kim Keon-hee was arrested on August 12. The decisive factor in the court’s decision to issue a detention warrant was the revelation that she had lied about a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace she wore during an overseas trip in the past. With former President and her husband Yoon Suk-yeol already in custody, her arrest marks the first time in history that a former president and first lady have been detained at the same time.

Judge Jeong Jae-wook of the Seoul Central District Court, who is in charge of reviewing arrest warrants, held a detention hearing for Kim from 10:10 a.m. to 2:35 p.m. and later issued a warrant on charges of violating the Capital Markets Act, violating the Political Funds Act, and receiving bribes under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes. The judge cited “concerns over the destruction of evidence” as the reason for the decision. Kim, who had been waiting in a holding room for suspects at Seoul Southern Detention Center in Guro-gu, was transferred to the main cell block and formally incarcerated.

During the hearing, special counsel Min Joong-ki's team investigating Kim obtained the genuine Van Cleef necklace, identified as having been purchased from construction company Seohee Construction and worn by Kim during a past overseas trip, and submitted it to the court. The special counsel team argued that Kim had repeatedly lied about the necklace, claiming it was a fake, to support their assertion that there was a risk of evidence destruction. They also submitted a voluntary statement from Seohee Construction admitting, “We purchased the necklace and gave it to Kim.” After hearing both sides, the judge reportedly asked Kim, “Did you receive the Van Cleef necklace from Seohee Construction?” to which she replied, “No.” The special counsel team also pointed out that another expensive luxury watch Kim received was found without the watch itself, only its warranty card, which they cited as further evidence of possible destruction of evidence.

The special counsel team charged Kim with engaging in 3,832 instances of matched orders and high-priced purchase orders between October 21, 2010, and December 5, 2012, gaining 811,443,596 won in illicit profit (violation of the Capital Markets Act). She is also accused of accepting 58 instances of free polling data worth 274.4 million won from political broker Myung Tae-kyun between June 26, 2021, and March 2, 2022, as illegal political donations (violation of the Political Funds Act). In addition, between April and July 2022, she allegedly received a Graff necklace worth 62.2 million won, two Chanel handbags worth 8.02 million and 12.71 million won each, and ginseng tea from the Unification Church through Jeon Seong-bae, a shaman known as Geon Jin, in connection with requests related to former President Yoon’s official duties (bribery under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes).

Kim’s legal team denied all charges, saying she “was unaware of any stock manipulation involving Deutsch Motors” and “never received expensive necklaces or luxury handbags.” On the allegation of evidence destruction related to the “overseas trip necklace,” they simply said, “That’s a separate matter, and we will respond during the investigation process.” In her closing statement in court, Kim said, “It’s upsetting that matters from before my marriage are still being brought up. I ask the judge to make a fair judgment.”

The special counsel team plans to investigate Kim further during her maximum 20-day detention before indicting her. With her custody secured, the investigation is expected to gain further momentum.