Prosecutors question museum director over allegations involving former first lady’s jacket

Prosecutors questioned the director of the National Hangeul Museum (NHM) on Monday over allegations relating to a luxury jacket worn by former President Moon Jae-in’s wife, Kim Jung-sook, during a visit to France in 2018.

Kim Il-hwan, the director of the NHM, was questioned as a witness by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, which is investigating suspicion that Kim failed to return a jacket with a Korean alphabet motif that she borrowed from Chanel and wore during her career. A trip to France in October 2018.

Prosecutors reportedly asked the NHM director about the circumstances that led to Chanel donating the jacket to the museum. They also called another NHM official as a witness.

Moon’s office previously said the jacket was returned in March 2022 and Chanel donated it to the NHM for public display.

However, critics later said that the jacket donated to NHM was different from the one worn by Kim, after which Chanel reversed its previous position, claiming that the company had donated a separate jacket at NHM’s request.

Lee Jong-bae, a Seoul city councilor affiliated with the ruling People’s Power Party, filed a complaint with prosecutors in January this year, raising suspicions that Kim may have kept the jacket instead of returning it. (Yonhap)