Seoul, South Korea, Court Reportedly Sentences Unification Church Leader Hak Ja Han to Two Years

Two reports on the case differ in the details they give. One describes Hak Ja Han, the 83-year-old leader of the Unification Church, as accused of embezzling 10.5 billion won in church funds, and says her first trial was set to begin the following month. The other, dated August 31, 2026, reports that the Seoul Central District Court had already sentenced her. The reports do not give a date for the first, so this article does not place the trial relative to the sentencing beyond what each report states.

According to the report of the sentencing, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Han to two years in prison on Monday. The court convicted her of violating the political funds act, bribery and embezzling church funds. That report says Han was arrested in September 2025 and charged with colluding with church officials to give then-first lady Kim Keon Hee luxury goods in pursuit of political favors. She was also charged with giving lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong 100 million won ($73,000) months before Yoon’s inauguration in May 2022.

The same report states that Kim had received a four-year prison term at an appeals court earlier this year for receiving a Graff diamond necklace, two Chanel bags and stock price manipulation. It does not describe any link between that ruling and the outcome for Han beyond the shared background of the charges.

On Monday, the court also sentenced one church official to six months in prison and gave two other church officials suspended terms, according to the same report. Han had been out of prison because the court had suspended her arrest over health issues until September 2. Accountability for funds entrusted to church leaders is the central matter the court was asked to weigh (Luke 12:48).

The Unification Church said it deeply apologizes but cannot accept the ruling and will appeal it.