Unification Church leader arrested on bribery charges

A district court in Seoul on Tuesday approved an arrest warrant for 82-year-old Hak Ja Han, leader of the religious group known as the Unification Church, as part of an investigation into claims that she gave money and expensive gifts to political leaders. Investigators claim Han bribed Kim Keon Hee, the wife of former President Yoon Suk Yeol. Authorities also claim she directed a Unification Church official to give tens of thousands of dollars to conservative lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong. The district court judge said he approved Han’s arrest because he was concerned she could destroy evidence, according to South Korean media outlet The Chosun Daily. The investigation is part of a larger probe into potential collusion between the religious group and the previous administration.

What has Han’s organization said? A representative for the religious group, formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, criticized Han’s arrest and said the allegations against her were politically motivated and false. Han’s legal team admitted that bribery occurred but claimed the group’s former director of global operations, Yun Young-ho, was solely responsible for it. South Korean officials arrested Yun over the summer on charges of delivering luxury items and illegal political funds to political leaders. Kweon has also denied receiving money from the religious group.

What is the Unification Church? Han’s late husband, Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, started the group in 1954. Moon claimed to be the second messiah and said Jesus had tasked him to bring about world peace. Han assumed leadership of the church when Moon died in 2012. The group is known for organizing mass weddings, has been accused of forcing followers to donate large portions of their salaries to the organization, and owns The Washington Times, a newspaper in Washington, D.C. 

Dig deeper: Read Elizabeth Russell’s report about another South Korean cult that mimics sound doctrine to recruit believers.