South Korea‘s former first lady, Kim Haeon Hee, will spend her first day in jail today in a cell like the one her husband and former president Yoon Suk Yel is in, as prosecutors pursue the country’s one-time top couple as part of a criminal investigation that is growing in scope.

Kim was transferred to Seoul’s Nabu Detention Center on the west side of the capital, a relatively new correctional facility that opened in 2011 and one of the few run by a woman.

Kim will get the same treatment as other inmates but will have some minor adjustments to her daily routine given that she is a prominent figure, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

The former first lady was jailed after a court approved a warrant for her arrest late yesterday, Tuesday, on suspicion that she might destroy evidence in the ongoing investigation on charges of bribery, stock fraud and undue influence.

Kim’s lawyers have denied the charges against her and have dismissed as unfounded speculation media reports of some gifts she allegedly received in exchange for various favors.

Kim apologised for causing concern in the country and said she was “a nobody” when she appeared for questioning last week.

Her cell has a small table that can be used as a desk as well as to eat her meals and a floor mat to sleep on, said the source, who asked not to be named because she is not authorized to speak to the press.

Kim will have separate access to shared showers and will be allowed to pre-bath for an hour every day except Sundays, with different hours so as not to coincide with other inmates, the source said.

Prison will be a completely new experience for Kim, unlike her husband who has already spent about 100 days in a correctional facility.

Yoon is on trial for his failed attempt to impose martial law, on charges of sedition, which he denies. He has been imprisoned at the Seoul Detention Center, which despite its name is located outside the capital, to the south.

“Political mind”

The country’s former first couple lived in a spacious apartment in an upscale area of Seoul before Yun’s election to the presidency in May 2022 and returned there after his impeachment over the martial law decree that led to political disaster for him, his party, and now his wife.

Kim is a wealthy businesswoman and most of the couple’s assets, including the apartment, belong to her, according to a government database.

Now, Kim will receive the same meal as the average inmate, mostly Korean fare at a cost of about 1,500 won ($1.08) per meal. Today, breakfast included toasted bread with strawberry jam, sausages and salad.

Kim has not eaten since yesterday and her health is not very good, one of her lawyers told Reuters. It is unclear whether she will appear for questioning by prosecutors tomorrow, the lawyer said.

Kim, who has a background in fine arts and founded and ran a successful art curatorial firm, has been embroiled in a series of scandals in the past and since her husband’s election as president in 2022, with those controversies sometimes overshadowing Yoon’s tumultuous presidency.

Her sartorial choices and lobbying on issues such as pushing for a ban on eating dog meat have made her a controversial figure in a country where the first lady typically keeps a low profile.

Han Dong-soo, a former judge and prosecutor who worked with Yun, said Kim had a “politically strategic mind” and was the driving force behind her husband’s rise to the highest office in the country.

After her marriage to Yoon when he was 52, Kim was the one who practically influenced all his thoughts and decisions, Han said. Kim was 39 when they married.

“Kim Heon Hee chose him,” Han said. “And she gave him the strategy and energy to become president.”