Wife of jailed South Korean ex-president indicted for corruption

South Korea’s former first lady, Kim Keon Hee, was indicted Friday on charges of bribery and stock market manipulation, accused of amassing over 1 billion won ($720,000) in illicit gains. Prosecutors say she profited from a stock scheme between 2010–2012, took bribes from the Unification Church in 2022, and conspired with her husband, ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, to receive free polling data. Yoon, impeached after declaring martial law in late 2024, faces insurrection charges carrying a possible death penalty. Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo was also indicted for abetting Yoon’s martial law attempt, CNBC has reported. The indictments come amid broader probes into Yoon’s administration, approved by President Lee Jae Myung, which included raids on a church and a U.S.-South Korea air base—raids U.S. President Donald Trump criticized before later softening his stance in a meeting with Lee.