SEOUL: A South Korean appeals court increased the corruption sentence for former first lady Kim Keon Hee on Tuesday to four years in jail after finding her guilty of stock manipulation and bribery.

Kim, the wife of jailed ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol, was handed 20 months in jail for bribery at an initial trial in January, but was acquitted of acting to rig stock prices and other charges.

She appealed the verdict in the hope of clearing her name, while prosecutors also did so arguing that the sentence was too lenient and the acquittals were wrongful.

On Tuesday, the Seoul High Court overturned her acquittal for stock price fraud and maintained her initial graft conviction, resulting in a much heavier penalty.

The court found Kim guilty of manipulating the share price of Deutsch Motors, a South Korean car dealer, which it ruled a "collusive...

trading act constituting market manipulation".

Kim, who appeared in court wearing a white face mask, kept her head lowered as the verdict was announced.

The court said the 53-year-old had "failed to acknowledge her culpability and has instead consistently resorted to excuses".

As a result of her accepting bribes, "public trust in the transparency of state affairs and the fair execution of national policy was undermined," it added.

The court took into account Kim’s lack of a prior criminal record in its sentencing.

Lawyers for Kim told AFP they would appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court.