Unification Church Leader Indicted in 500M Won Embezzlement
Published By admin
The special prosecution team led by Min Joong-ki, investigating allegations related to Kim Keon-hee, has identified circumstances in which Han Hak-ja, the Unification Church leader, embezzled approximately 500 million won in church funds for personal purposes, including purchasing luxury goods and jewelry.
According to the indictment of Han, obtained by this newspaper on the 18th, the special counsel included these details while indicting Han on charges including occupational embezzlement and violations of the Political Funds Act.
According to the special counsel, Jung Won-ju, former chief of staff to the president, instructed Lee Mo-shi, the spouse of Yun Young-ho, former head of the Unification Church’s global headquarters, in May 2022, to pay 420 million won to S Jewelry for the cost of brooches and earrings to be given to Han.
Lee, who served as the head of the Unification Church’s financial management division, initially paid the amount with personal funds and then submitted documentation to make it appear as church event expenses, thereby reclaiming the cost from church funds. From August 2022 to May 2023, Lee allegedly embezzled approximately 534 million won in church funds by fabricating receipts for personal expenses, such as meals and medical costs, and processing them as Unification Church-related expenses.
Meanwhile, the special counsel determined that the Unification Church had agreed in March to April 2022 to provide so-called “split donations” to the People Power Party’s 17 metropolitan and provincial offices to support Yoon Suk-yeol, then the People Power Party’s presidential candidate. In particular, it was judged that after former head Yun instructed subordinate district leaders to support former President Yoon, a total of 210 million won was sent down under the guise of missionary support funds. The district leaders then reportedly met with People Power Party lawmakers, expressed their support, and distributed approximately 144 million won in donations after splitting the funds.
The special counsel assessed that in November 2022, when Geonjin Beopsa Jeon Seong-bae requested the Unification Church to recruit followers to join the party to support a specific candidate in the following year’s People Power Party leadership election, the church decided to use its organization and finances to support former President Yoon and others.
Additionally, the special counsel found that Han and others purchased items worth a total of 82.93 million won, including a Chanel bag worth 12.71 million won and a Graff necklace worth 62.2 million won, using church funds, and used them as gifts for Kim. Furthermore, a Chanel bag worth approximately 8.02 million won and one bottle of Cheon Su Sam concentrated tea, presumed to have been delivered to Kim, were also identified as being funded by the Unification Church. The special counsel judged that the church provided these high-value items to expand Han’s religious influence and request various forms of support.
Additionally, the special counsel viewed that the Unification Church withdrew a portion of the “Cheonseung Fund,” created from congregants’ donations, in cash without recording it in the accounts and submitted it to Han. Some of the donations sent by overseas congregants for construction funds, including for Cheonjeong Palace, were also transferred to Han or used for the personal purposes of former chief Jung, with approximately 500 million won embezzled in the process. It was investigated that Lee fabricated a list of fake overseas missionaries, created a resolution for “missionary activity funds,” and raised 690,000 US dollars (approximately 900 million won) under this pretext, which was then delivered to former chief Jung.
Content retrieved from: https://www.chosun.com/english/national-en/2025/10/18/WAQFKIME2BBGRPVHRSRIWZTXDY/.
