Seoul, Oct 13 (AFP) Ousted South Korean president ParkGeun-Hye will be kept in detention for a further six months, aSeoul court ruled today, as she stands trial in a corruptioncase that toppled her from power.
The sprawling scandal involving the former leader and herpowerful secret confidante, Choi Soon-Sil, unleashed massivenationwide protests last year and has exposed networks ofprivilege among the country's business and political elite.
Park, 65, was impeached in March and has been detainedsince then, while standing trial on multiple charges includingabuse of power, coercion and bribery that also involved thecountry's tech giant Samsung.
The Seoul Central District Court on Friday extendedPark's detention until April next year, citing a potentialrisk of evidence being destroyed.
She stands accused of offering policy favours to businesstycoons including Samsung heir Lee Jae-Yong who helped enrichChoi -- the daughter of a shady religious figure who was alongtime mentor to Park until his death in 1994.
Park is also accused of letting Choi, who has no title orsecurity clearance, handle a wide range of state affairsincluding senior nominations and cabinet formation, as well asher daily wardrobe choices.
The scandal also saw Lee -- the heir to the world'slargest smartphone maker -- convicted of bribery and othercharges relating to payments made by Samsung to Choi.
Lee, currently in jail and appealing his five-year prisonterm, maintains he is innocent and was forced by Park to helpenrich Choi.
Choi has also been detained for months while on trial formultiple charges including coercion and bribery.
Park rose to power in 2012 largely thanks to thepopularity of her late strongman father, Park Chung Hee, whohad spearheaded the South's stellar economic growth under his1961-79 rule.
But the scandal that emerged late last year unleashednationwide fury, even among many of her conservativesupporters.
It is unclear when the court will deliver a verdict onPark, whose marathon trial involves more than 100 witnesses.
(AFP)AMS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.