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UPI

Unification Church leadership investigated for financial crimes, election interference

A global mass wedding organized by South Korea's Unification Church and officiated by religious leader Hak Ja-Han (L), was joined by some 4,000 couples worldwide. File photo by Jeon Heon-Kyun/EPA SEOUL, July 21 (UPI) -- South Korea's special prosecutor is intensifying its probe into the Unification Church, focusing on its top leadership over allegations of financial crimes and unlawful political activities. The team led by Special Prosecutor Min Jung-ki conducted a second raid Monday at the church's headquarters in Seoul's Yongsan District, during which investigators seized additional internal records and digital data. The operation followed a broader crackdown Friday, when authorities searched more than 10 church-affiliated sites, including the Cheon Jeong Gung palace in Gapyeong and the private residence of former church executive Yoon Young-ho. According to the Hankook Ilbo, the search warrants identified several senior officials as criminal suspects: Hak Ja-Han, the church's current chairwoman; Jung Wonju, executive secretary to Hak and vice president of the Cheon Mu-Won, the church's highest administrative body; and Lee Cheong-woo, director of the Central Administration Office. Jung Wonju has emerged as a central figure in the case, with prosecutors focusing on her behind-the-scenes coordination of operations, reportedly enabled by her close ties to Hak. All three are being investigated for alleged violations of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, particularly involving brokered bribery and influence peddling. Yoon Young-ho is accused of offering cash and luxury gifts to lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong in return for political favors. Rep. Kweon, a close ally of then-presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, allegedly played a key role in facilitating the candidate's appearance at an event hosted by a Unification Church-affiliated organization on Feb. 13, 2022. Yoon Young-ho served as the co-organizing chair and delivered the opening declaration at the event, raising suspicions that Kweon may have acted as an intermediary between Yoon Young-ho and the Yoon presidential couple. Beyond the financial and political charges lies a deeper theological rift within the church. According to multiple former insiders, a group of church leaders and members who remained faithful to the original teachings and spiritual mission of founder Rev. Sun Myung Moon were systematically expelled by the current leadership. These reformers opposed what they described as opportunistic reinterpretations of Rev. Moon's core teachings -- altered, they argue, to legitimize the centralization of power and the silencing of dissent, while elevating Hak to a quasi-divine status. Prosecutors are now examining three years of financial records and digital evidence seized during the raids, seeking to trace suspicious financial flows and uncover evidence of systemic wrongdoing. Analysts say the outcome of the investigation may determine not only the legal future of the Unification Church, but also its spiritual legitimacy in the eyes of its followers and the public.