Former first couple's lawyer asks supporters to stop posting Kim Keon Hee's letters from prison

A lawyer for former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, former first lady Kim Keon Hee, asked the couple’s supporters to stop posting photos of the letters that Kim sends them from detention, warning that such behavior could ultimately stop her from writing them.

Supporters have been posting photos of handwritten letters that they claim are from Kim online, which goes against the former first lady’s wishes, according to Yoo Jung-hwa, a member of the couple’s team of attorneys. 

“Ms. Kim has made it clear in every letter to her supporters that she does not want them to be disclosed to outsiders. Despite this, I understand that photos of her replies have been made public several times,” Yoo wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

“Please understand that, if this continues, it may become difficult for Ms. Kim to reply to the letters that she receives,” she continued.

One supporter posted part of an alleged letter on June 12.

“I was moved that you said in this letter I could think of you as a daughter,” it reads.

Another letter, also attributed to her, surfaced in February.

“I would like to at least wave to those cheering for me outside, but the windows are all blocked off, so there is nothing that I can do,” it reads.

Yoo also addressed a rumor circulating among protestors of the June 3 local elections, in which a lawyer for Yoon reportedly stated that the police could not enter the Olympic Park vote-counting site because demonstrators were flying the U.S. flag, causing officials to worry that any harm to them would result in a response from the United States.

“Recently, accounts of ‘Yoon’s defense team said this or that’ have spread,” she wrote. “But the lawyer [named in the rumor] is not a member of former President Yoon’s legal team. We had no choice but to explain this matter because many citizens have inquired and asked us to confirm the facts.”

What one of the letter allegedly written by Kim Keon Hee said

This letter, allegedly written by former first lady Kim Keon Hee, expresses gratitude to her supporters, as reading their messages “left her feeling that there was still hope and that she had many friends.”

It recounts that Kim, who is currently in detention, reportedly heard a loud cheer carried in from outside one Sunday evening, which brought her to tears. According to the letter, the former first lady often wants to at least wave to the people rallying for her, but she cannot because the windows are completely sealed. It then thanks her supporters for showing love, even to someone “lacking and full of sin,” despite her lack of response, and states that God will surely protect them. The comfort from her supporters allegedly gives Kim the strength to push through her poor health.

The message also offers an apology, as her illness has left her unable to reply to the letters arriving for her.

She ended the post by asking for a calm response.

“Those who upload posts [of the letters] surely mean no harm, so at this grave time, I hope that we can show a little more understanding and embrace one another rather than fall into misunderstandings and needless conflict. Whatever the issue, I ask once again that you at least double-check the basic facts.”

Protests erupted after some polling stations experienced ballot shortages on Election Day, an episode that protesters have cast as evidence that the vote was rigged. Demonstrators have since occupied the vote-counting site at Olympic Park in Songpa District, southern Seoul. Blocking officials and even lawmakers from reaching the ballot boxes, protesters have demanded a rerun of the election, bringing an end to early voting and counting votes by hand.

Many have also waved the Korean and U.S. flags side by side, echoing the U.S. movement that claimed the 2020 presidential election was stolen, and carried “Yoon Again” signs calling for the former president’s return to power. Some have even demanded an international investigation into the vote.

Election authorities have apologized for the shortages but tied them to underestimating voter turnout and distributing ballots unevenly among precincts, after a 2025 rule change allowed local offices to print fewer ballots. Legal experts have said that the shortages are unlikely to lead to criminal charges or to overturn the result.

On April 28, the Seoul High Court overturned a lower-court ruling and sentenced Kim to four years in prison, up from the one year and eight months that she had received at her first trial, and a 50 million won ($32,300) fine. It also ordered the confiscation of a Graff necklace that was gifted to her by the Unification Church, as well as the forfeiture of 20.94 million won.

The appellate panel also found that Kim had acted as a co-principal in the Deutsch Motors stock manipulation case, reversing the lower-court ruling. However, it upheld her acquittal on a charge of receiving free opinion polls from political broker Myung Tae-kyun.

Kim is separately scheduled to receive a first-instance verdict at 2 p.m. on Friday for charges of taking a series of gifts — including a Dior bag, a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace and a gold turtle figurine — in return for business favors and help with job appointments. The special counsel team, led by Min Joong-ki, has sought a sentence of seven years and six months.

BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]