The ruling, delivered on Friday, comes less than a year after prosecutors formally charged Kim with bribery, violations of financial market laws, and breaches of political funding regulations.
According to reports cited by US News, the conviction follows months of intense investigations into alleged corruption involving senior figures in the former administration.
Kim was indicted in August 2025 by a prosecution team led by Special Prosecutor Min Joong-ki, approximately two weeks after a court issued an arrest order against her. Prosecutors alleged that she received illicit benefits and engaged in financial misconduct tied to political funding arrangements during her husband’s presidency.
Her sentencing adds another layer to the ongoing legal and political crisis that has engulfed South Korea since late 2024, when President Yoon declared martial law in a controversial move aimed at advancing his policy agenda in the face of an opposition-controlled National Assembly.
The declaration, made on December 3, 2024, was reversed within hours by lawmakers, but it triggered months of political instability, disrupted governance, and unsettled both domestic and international confidence in the administration.
Yoon was subsequently impeached and removed from office in April, before being rearrested following an early presidential election in which his conservative party suffered defeat.
The crisis led to the appointment of multiple special prosecutors tasked with investigating both the martial law declaration and broader corruption allegations involving former officials, including Kim and members of Yoon’s inner circle.
Additional investigations have also implicated former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who was charged with allegedly supporting the martial law declaration and is facing accusations of document falsification and perjury. Former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun has also been under scrutiny for his alleged role in planning the emergency measure and deploying troops to the National Assembly in an attempt to prevent lawmakers from overturning it.
Authorities have confirmed that dozens of individuals have been arrested or are under investigation in connection with the political crisis, including more than 60 people linked to riots at a Seoul court following Yoon’s initial arrest warrant in January.
In May 2025, prosecutors further charged Yoon with abuse of authority, expanding the legal challenges surrounding his presidency and deepening scrutiny of his administration’s actions.
Kim’s sentencing is widely seen as a significant milestone in one of South Korea’s most consequential political and legal crises in recent years, with investigations still ongoing into the full extent of alleged misconduct within the former government.