South Korea's Unification Church leader sentenced to 2 years in prison for corruption

The leader of South Korea's controversial Unification Church was sentenced to two years in prison Monday in a corruption case involving former first lady Kim Keon-hee, local media reported.

Han Hak-ja, 83, the widow of church founder Sun Myung Moon, was accused of providing a luxury necklace and a Chanel bag to Kim through an intermediary in July 2022 while seeking favors for the church, according to Yonhap News.

Han, who was arrested last year, was indicted by a special prosecutor on multiple charges, including allegations of "collusion between religion and politics."

The court convicted Han and others of delivering gifts to Kim as part of what prosecutors described as a "two-track" effort to solicit favors on issues concerning the Unification Church, according to the Chosun daily.

Kim herself was sentenced to 20 months in prison in January for accepting luxury gifts from the church in exchange for political favors. An appeals court increased her sentence to four years in April after convicting her on additional charges, including accepting another Chanel bag and stock-price manipulation.

Kim is the wife of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was removed from office by the Constitutional Court in April 2025 after parliament impeached him over his short-lived declaration of martial law in December 2024.