Moonies leader sentenced to two years in prison for bribery

SEOUL, August 31 (AJP) - Han Hak-ja, leader of the powerful Unification Church, better known as the Moonies, was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday over multiple allegations including bribery involving former first lady Kim Keon Hee.

The Seoul Central District Court handed down the sentence against Han, the widow of the church's founder Moon Sun-myung, for bribing Kim with a luxury bag and jewelry worth 80 million won in return for favors for the church in 2022.

Han was arrested last year and indicted on allegations that she instructed church officials to provide bribes to Kim, the wife of disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol. She was also accused of colluding with an ex-cult follower to give 100 million won (US$72,400) to Kweon Seong-dong, former leader of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), in 2022 in exchange for his help in securing favors for the church.

Monday's ruling comes more than a month after prosecutors sought a 13-year prison sentence for Han, criticizing her actions as a "grave crime that severely violates the constitutional principle of the separation of religion and politics and undermines democratic values."

But Han has denied the charges, maintaining that she had no involvement in the bribery and that the former follower who gave money to Kweon acted independently.

Earlier in January, in a separate case, Kim was sentenced to 20 months in prison for receiving luxury gifts including a Graff diamond necklace and a Chanel handbag from the church. But an appeals court increased her sentence to four years in April after finding her guilty of additional offenses including receiving another Chanel bag from the church.

Han's case is part of a broader corruption scandal involving Yoon and his wife, after Yoon was ousted from office due to his abrupt, short-lived declaration of martial law in late 2024, bringing a dramatic end to his presidency.

AJP Takeaways

• Unification Church leader Hak Ja Han was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday over corruption charges involving alleged bribery of former first lady Kim Keon Hee.
• Han was accused of providing Kim with luxury gifts worth 80 million won in exchange for political favors, while also allegedly arranging a 100 million won payment to former People Power Party leader Kweon Seong-dong.
• Han denied the charges, while the case is part of a broader corruption scandal involving former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim.