Appeal Trial for 'Kim Keon Hee’s Butler' Kim Ye-seong to Begin in Earnest on the 13th...Fresh Clash with Special Counsel Ahead

[Financial News] The appeal trial of Kim Ye-seong, who has been described as First Lady Kim Keon Hee’s "butler," is set to begin in earnest.
According to legal sources on the 4th, the Seoul High Court’s Criminal Division 8, presided over by Presiding Judge Kim Sung-soo of the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 8, will hold the first preparatory hearing on the 13th for Kim, who is charged with embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes and occupational embezzlement, among other offenses.
Kim is accused of embezzling approximately 4.8 billion won in investment funds from IMS Mobility and InnoBest Korea, in which he holds shares, and using the money to repay loans and cover housing and other personal expenses. He has been labeled as Kim Keon Hee’s "butler" and is also a central figure in the so-called "Butler Gate" scandal. Butler Gate centers on allegations that IMS Mobility improperly raised about 18.4 billion won in investment funds in 2023 from large corporations and financial institutions, including Kakao Mobility, through a private equity fund manager. However, matters directly involving Kim Keon Hee have been excluded from the scope of this trial.
In the first trial, the court handed down an acquittal and dismissed the remaining charges against Kim. It found that part of the allegations related to "stock price manipulation and others" fell under an investigation initiated ex officio by the authorities.
The court nevertheless found Kim not guilty of the 2.43 billion won embezzlement charge brought by the special counsel. It held that Kim’s transfer of 2.43 billion won, in collusion with IMS Mobility CEO Jo Young-tak, to his borrowed-name company InnoBest Korea could be viewed as an act aimed at realizing economic benefit.
All remaining counts were dismissed. The court reasoned that those other allegations against Kim did not fall within the scope of the special counsel’s investigative mandate.
The Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Team, led by Special Counsel Min Joong-ki, appealed, arguing that this was "a textbook case of embezzlement, involving the arbitrary use of corporate funds for personal purposes."
theknight@fnnews.com Jung Kyung-soo Reporter