Unification Church Leader Receives Two-Year Sentence, Remains Free Until End of Month

The leader of the Unification Church, Han Hak-ja, who was sentenced to two years in prison for alleged collusion with the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, will remain free until the end of the month.

On September 1, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 27, led by Judge Woo In-sung, accepted Han's request to extend the suspension of his sentence. The suspension period, originally set to expire at 6 p.m. on September 2, has now been extended to 6 p.m. on September 30.

Han was sentenced the previous day to one year in prison for violating the Political Fund Act and another year for breaching the Anti-Graft Act and embezzlement. Although the court denied his bail request, he was not taken into custody due to the remaining suspension period.

Han's legal team cited health issues, including a shoulder fracture and vision problems, as reasons for the extension of the suspension. The suspension of sentence allows for temporary release while maintaining the effectiveness of the sentence in cases of serious illness or urgent circumstances.

Previously, Han was indicted for allegedly providing 100 million won to former People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong and gifting expensive jewelry and bags to Kim Geon-hee in exchange for favors related to church matters.

The court found him guilty of these charges and some allegations of embezzlement involving church funds.

However, the court ruled him not guilty of the 14.4 million won related to 'split donations' to lawmakers, stating that there was no intent to illegally gain from the actions. Charges related to witness tampering and embezzlement concerning political donations to foreign politicians were dismissed as they did not fall under the jurisdiction of the special prosecutor's investigation team led by Kim Geon-hee.