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Ex-first lady defies prosecutors’ summons in influence-peddling, stock manipulation probes

June 23, 2025

Former first lady Kim Keon Hee defied prosecutors’ summons Monday over allegations of stock price manipulation and interference with the election nomination process, officials said.

A special investigation unit under the prosecution had requested Kim, the wife of ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, to appear for questioning as a suspect, but Kim did not comply with the summons, according to judicial officials.

It marked the third summons by the prosecution team investigating allegations of Kim’s influence peddling in the 2022 parliamentary by-elections.

Kim also failed to appear for a separate summons issued by the Seoul High Court over her alleged involvement in the manipulation of stock prices of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer in South Korea, from 2009-2012.

The summons reportedly did not reach Kim as she had been hospitalized at the Seoul Asan Medical Center in eastern Seoul for an undisclosed illness since last week.

An independent counsel tasked with investigating corruption allegations linked to Kim is likely to question the former first lady in person.