Han Byung-do: “Kim Keon Hee must remain in custody”
- Input
- 2026-10-27 10:11:30
- Updated
- 2026-10-27 10:11:30
At a meeting on measures for parliamentary audits held at the National Assembly that day, Han said, “A hearing on an additional detention warrant for Ms. Kim will be held this afternoon (the 27th,” adding, “To get straight to the point, Ms. Kim must remain in custody.”
He stressed, “She received a prison sentence on appeal on charges of selling government appointments, and the related trial has not yet concluded. An additional detention warrant should be issued after carefully weighing the seriousness of the crime and the risk of evidence destruction.”
He also argued, “The so-called ‘three major allegations involving Kim Keon Hee’—stock manipulation involving Deutsche Motors, accepting free opinion polls from Myeong Tae-gyun, and receiving money and valuables from the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (Unification Church)—were suddenly referred to the full bench just one day before the final appeal ruling, and no decision has yet been reached. Public suspicion is only growing that all of this may have been a move to pave the way for Ms. Kim’s release.”
He continued, “The insurrection cases involving former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min were also referred to the full bench nearly three months ago. The deadline for a ruling has passed, yet no date for the ruling has even been set. A delay in the trial must not become a path to release,” he said emphatically.
Han also criticized the situation, citing the recent acquittal of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon in his second trial on charges of having someone else pay for opinion polls, as well as successive sentence reductions for those involved in the December 3 emergency martial law, and asked, “If Ms. Kim were also released under these circumstances, which citizen would trust the judiciary?”
[email protected] Kim Hyeong-gu Reporter