South Korea prosecutors seek arrest of Unification Church leader

Seoul – South Korean prosecutors on Sept 18 requested an arrest warrant for the leader of the Unification Church, Ms Han Hak-ja, on allegations of bribery linked to the country’s former first lady and incitement to destroy evidence.

The move came a day after

the 82-year-old was questioned

over her alleged role in bribing former first lady Kim Keon Hee and a prominent lawmaker.

Founded in 1954 by her late husband Moon Sun-myung, the Unification Church has long been the subject of controversy and criticism, with its teachings centred on Moon’s role as the Second Coming, its mass weddings and a cult-like culture.

Followers are derisively referred to as “Moonies”.

But the church’s reach extends far beyond religion, spanning businesses from the media to tourism to food distribution.

Ms Han assumed leadership of the church after Moon’s death in 2012.

“We have requested an arrest warrant for Han earlier today,” said prosecutor Park Sang-jin.

“The charges against her include violation of the political funds Act, anti-graft law, incitement to destroy evidence and embezzlement,” he added.

“We considered the risk of Han tampering with evidence to be very high, which led us to seek the warrant.”

A court is expected to review the validity of the warrant request early next week.

Ms Han is suspected of ordering the delivery of luxury gifts including a designer handbag and diamond necklace to Kim in 2022 to curry favour with her husband, Yoon Suk Yeol, who became president that year.

The former first lady has been arrested

and indicted on charges

of bribery and stock-market manipulation, while her husband – also in custody – is standing trial over his declaration of martial law in December 2024.

The couple fell from grace after

Yoon’s martial law declaration

briefly suspended civilian rule, before it was overturned by opposition MPs.

Yoon was impeached

and removed from office in April over the attempt.

Ms Han also faces allegations of bribing a prominent MP with 100 million won (S$92,300).

A Seoul court issued an arrest warrant on Sept 16 for the lawmaker, Kweon Seong-dong, citing the risk he could tamper with evidence.

Ms Han, who was wheeled out of the prosecutors’ office after more than nine hours of questioning, denied wrongdoing.

“Why would I have done that?” she said when asked about the allegations.

Prosecutor Park also said Ms Han had denied committing any crimes during the Sept 17 questioning. AFP