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On Thursday, Im was convicted of obstructing official duties through deception after trying to conceal his girlfriend’s crimes last year, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The case began in April 2025, when a woman in her 80s was held and assaulted by her grandson in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province.

According to the Korea Heraldinvestigators said Im’s girlfriend, surnamed Park and identified as a shaman in her 40s, was behind the assault. Authorities said she intended to force the grandson’s father to apologize after the latter refused to follow her advice on land transaction issues.

The man, reportedly acquainted with Im, had arranged long-term accommodation for both him and Park at a guesthouse in Yeoncheon from around 2023.

The case was uncovered after the elderly woman escaped and reported it to police. During the investigation, Park staged a fake suicide involving the victim’s granddaughter to mislead authorities.

Surveillance footage later showed Im, Park and the granddaughter riding together in the same vehicle.

In the ruling, the judge said Im appeared to have been aware of his girlfriend’s crime as he saw the victim after the attack and verbally abused her.

Lee Boo-jin, daughter of late Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee and president and chief executive of Hotel Shilla. Photo by Reuters

Im has since appealed, and the appellate trial is reportedly ongoing. Park was sentenced to six years in prison, while the grandson received a three-year sentence.

Im began his career as an employee at Samsung before marrying into its founding family in 1999. Their union drew significant public attention due to the couple’s different backgrounds. The couple have a son, Im Dong-hyun, born in 2007. Their marriage ended in a high-profile divorce after years of disputes over child custody and assets. Lee retained custody of their son and paid 14.1 billion won (US$9.7 million) as part of the settlement

Lee, dubbed the “Samsung Princess,” currently serves as president and chief executive officer of Hotel Shilla, one of Seoul’s leading luxury hotels and conference venues, as well as one of South Korea’s largest duty-free operators, according to Forbes. She has also worked as an adviser to the trading division of Samsung C&T.