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Former President Park Geun-hye at the Seoul Detention Center (Hankyoreh photo archives)

After former South Korean President Park Geun-hye refused to pay 18 billion won (US$15.89 million) in fines and 3.5 billion won (US$3.09 million) in forfeiture, prosecutors have seized her house. The Supreme Court recently finalized Park’s sentence in the influence-peddling scandal that led to her impeachment.

Officials from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office announced Tuesday that they’d seized Park’s residence, located in the Naegok neighborhood of Seoul’s Seocho District.

On Mar. 16, prosecutors completed the seizure of two financial instruments, collecting 2.6 billion won (US$2.29 million) of the amount Park owes in forfeiture.

The prosecutors asked the Korea Asset Management Corporation to auction off the seized real estate.

In January, the Supreme Court upheld Park’s conviction on charges of abusing her office and pocketing money from the National Intelligence Service’s special activity fund. Park was sentenced to 20 years in prison and a total of 21.5 billion won (US$18.95 million) in fines and forfeiture.

Park failed to pay the various penalties by Feb. 22, the deadline for voluntary payment. Under Korea’s criminal code, penalties must be paid within 30 days of the conclusion of the final trial.

In 2018, a court accepted prosecutors’ request to freeze Park’s assets, which include her residence in Naegok, bank deposits, and 30 checks for 100 million won (US$88,199) that she’d placed in the care of her attorney, Yu Yeong-ha.

As of 2018, the Naegok house had an appraisal value of around 2.8 billion won (US$2.4 million). The prosecutors apparently seized the property because Park hadn’t paid her penalties by the deadline.

Park probably won’t be able to pay the entire sum she owes, which is over 20 billion won (US$ 17.6 million). Even if all of her frozen assets — which are said to be worth about 6 billion won (US$5.29 million) — were liquidated, it would fall short of the total.

Those who fail to pay their fines can be placed in a workhouse for a maximum of three years. But since Park still has more than 18 years left in her prison term, the prosecutors are reportedly looking into the option of confiscating her assets in stages, rather than all at once, and letting her do her time.

By Jang Ye-ji, staff reporter

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