Seoul: A special counsel team announced on Wednesday its decision to appeal a recent court ruling that acquitted Kim Ye-seong, an associate of former first lady Kim Keon Hee, on charges of embezzlement.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the appeal was filed by special counsel Min Joong-ki's team following the Seoul Central District Court's decision on Monday, which found Kim Ye-seong not guilty of embezzling billions of won from IMS Mobility, a car rental company he co-founded. The court also dismissed additional charges levied against him.

Min's team had initially pursued an eight-year prison sentence for Kim Ye-seong, after charging him in August with the embezzlement of 2.43 billion won (approximately US$1.67 million) from the company. However, the court determined that the evidence did not conclusively prove the charges as acts of embezzlement. Furthermore, the court ruled that various corruption charges involving Kim's family were not within the special counsel's jurisdiction for investigation.

In addition to appealing Kim Ye-seong's acquittal, Min's team has also contested the court's decision to acquit former prosecutor Kim Sang-min of bribery charges. The former prosecutor was accused of gifting a valuable painting to the former first lady in exchange for her endorsement of his candidacy for the People Power Party's nomination in the April 2024 general elections.