Former South Korean President Moon Jae-in Charged with Bribery Over Son-in-Law's Airline Job

April 24, 2025 | 04:17 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former President South Korea Moon Jae-in has been charged with bribery allegations. Prosecutors have charged Moon Jae In with arranging a job for his former son-in-law at an airline company.

Moon Jae In, who served as South Korea’s president from 2017 to 2022, is facing corruption allegations. Former lawmaker Lee Sang-jik, the founder of the budget airline Eastar Jet, has also been charged with bribery and breach of trust.

According to Yonhap, Moon and his daughter, Da-hye, are accused of receiving bribes in the form of salaries and financial benefits paid to Da-hye’s former husband, identified by his surname Seo, by the airline.

Seo was appointed as an executive director at Eastar Jet in 2018, shortly after Lee was named the head of the Korea Small and Medium Business Administration and Startup Korea (KOSME).

Prosecutors allege that Lee’s appointment to KOSME may have been granted in exchange for giving Seo the airline job, despite Seo’s lack of relevant experience in the aviation sector.

It is believed that Moon stopped providing financial support to his daughter’s household after Seo secured the position. Authorities estimate that approximately 223 million won, or around US$151,959, was paid to Seo and Da-hye by the airline as bribes to the former president.

As reported by The Star, the investigation began following a complaint filed five years ago concerning Seo’s recruitment at Eastar Jet. The probe then turned to possible links between Seo’s hiring and Lee Sang-jik’s appointment to lead KOSME.

The complaint was initially lodged by the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the civil organization Justice People between September 2020 and April 2021.

In the filing, Seo’s employment at the airline is alleged to have been a quid pro quo for political backing that benefited Lee, the airline's founder.

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