Prosecutors have decided not to indict first lady Kim Keon Hee after looking into her alleged involvement in a stock manipulation scheme involving Deutsch Motors Inc., a BMW dealer, concluding that she did not know her accounts were used for manipulation.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office announced the decision four and 1/2 years after the investigation began into allegations that Kim's stock trading accounts were used in a massive stock price manipulation scheme involving Deutsch Motors between 2009-2012.
The conclusion is expected to accelerate the opposition's push for an independent counsel investigation into allegations involving the first lady, including her acceptance of a luxury bag from a Korean American pastor in 2022.
The prosecution decided not to charge in the handbag case earlier this month.
The stock manipulation allegations surfaced in 2020, when President Yoon Suk Yeol was serving as prosecutor general. Several lawmakers subsequently filed a complaint against Kim and her mother over the alleged stock market manipulation.
Thursday's conclusion was reached after a critical review by its internal "red team," which was tasked with challenging the investigation's findings. The case was not referred to an independent investigative review committee, where politically sensitive cases are often considered.
Last month, an appellate court found former Deutsch Motors Chairman Kwon Oh-soo and several others guilty in the manipulation scheme case, including a man surnamed Sohn, who allegedly financed the scheme, as the first lady allegedly has.
The ruling had prompted calls from opposition parties that the first lady should also be charged with abetting the manipulation, as Sohn has been.
Prosecutors distinguished Kim's alleged involvement from that of Sohn, who was in direct communication with the traders involved in the manipulation scheme, concluding that, unlike Sohn, she had not been aware of the scheme's existence.
Prosecutors concluded that Kim entrusted her accounts to the former Deutsch Motors chief for investment proceeds, without knowing they were being used in the manipulation.
Prosecutors also decided not to indict the first lady's mother, Choi Eun-soon, on the same grounds. (Yonhap)
