The leader of South Korea’s Unification Church has been sentenced to two years in prison for her role in providing illegal political funds and luxury gifts to politicians, including former first lady Kim Keon Hee.The Seoul central district court on Monday found Han Hak Ja, 83, guilty of violating political funding laws and of bribery offences connected to attempts by the religious group to gain influence with the administration of former president Yoon Suk Yeol.The court sentenced Han to one year for her involvement in providing 100 million won ($72,934) to then-ruling People Power Party lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong ahead of the 2022 presidential election, and a further year over luxury gifts given to Kim through an intermediary.The gifts included a Chanel handbag and a diamond necklace, according to the ruling.Kim has acknowledged receiving Chanel bags through an intermediary but has denied involvement in alleged lobbying by the Unification Church or receiving gifts in exchange for political favours.She was sentenced in January to 20 months in prison for receiving gifts including a Graff diamond necklace and a Chanel bag from the church. An appeals court increased her sentence to four years in April after convicting her of additional offences, including receiving another Chanel bag and stock price manipulation."The crimes were committed to use the Unification Church's financial power to support a favourable candidate in the 20th presidential election, seen as an important opportunity to expand the church's influence, and, when that candidate was elected, to obtain support for church policies and continuously secure political influence," the judge said, reported Reuters.Unification Church leader Hak Ja Han, on the wheelchair, arrives for the sentencing hearing on allegations of bribery and political funding, at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, South Korea (AP)The court also found Han guilty of violating anti-graft laws over her involvement in giving the luxury goods to Kim in July 2022 while seeking political favours for the church through an intermediary.Han denied the allegations, saying she had no interest in politics and that subordinates had acted without her knowledge."I do not seek power with money," she said, adding that she had devoted her life to peace for humanity.The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, commonly known as the Unification Church, said it would appeal."We find it impossible to accept the court's judgment that President Han Hak-ja directed the acts in question or recognised and approved their illegal purpose," the church said in a statement.The court also sentenced Yun Young-ho, a former head of the church’s global headquarters, to six months in prison and handed a suspended sentence to a former aide to Han, reported Yonhap news agency. The three were indicted in connection with the case.Prosecutors had sought a combined 13-year prison term for Han, arguing that the alleged conduct amounted to an unlawful alliance between religion and politics that undermined representative democracy.The court convicted Han and other former church officials of making illegal political donations worth 144 million won ($105,233) using church funds in March 2022, but acquitted her of separate embezzlement charges linked to those donations.It also dismissed allegations that Han embezzled 787 million won in church funds to deliver campaign money to politicians in Nepal and Senegal, ruling that those charges fell outside the special counsel’s investigative mandate.Han, who is revered by followers as the "True Mother", arrived at court in a wheelchair, wearing hospital pyjamas and a surgical mask. She is not currently being detained after her lawyers secured a suspension of detention on health grounds.The suspension is due to expire on Wednesday. Han has repeatedly been transferred between a detention centre and hospital since her arrest in September 2025.The church said Han had medical issues including a heart condition, pain following a fall and treatment for glaucoma."Whether she will seek a further suspension remains a matter for discussion among her attorneys in consideration of her health conditions," a church spokesperson said.Han, the widow of church founder Sun Myung Moon, took over the leadership of the organisation after his death in 2012. Moon founded the church in 1954, and the movement became internationally known for its mass wedding ceremonies involving couples from different nationalities.The organisation, which officially operates as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, has significant business interests including media, education and food distribution. It has long faced scrutiny over its political ties in South Korea.The case formed part of a series of investigations into Yoon and his wife following his decision to impose martial law in December 2024. The move triggered a political crisis that led to his impeachment and removal from office.Kweon, the former ruling-party lawmaker accused of receiving 100 million won ($73.101) from the church, lost his National Assembly seat in July after the Supreme Court upheld a two-year prison sentence against him for accepting illegal funds.The members of the Unification Church, also called “moonies”, came under renewed scrutiny in Japan after the 2022 assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe. The suspected gunman said the organisation had contributed to his family’s financial ruin.The church says it has about 10 million followers worldwide.