Lee cut ties with him previously.
Singer and actor Lee Seung Gi’s father-in-law, who is also actress Kyeon Mi Ri’s husband, has been sentenced to prison in the first trial of a stock manipulation case.
On September 29, the Seoul Southern District Court sentenced Lee, whose full name has not been publicly disclosed in the report, to three years and six months in prison for violations of South Korea’s Capital Markets Act.
He was also ordered to pay a ₩400 million KRW (about $296,000 USD) fine and forfeit approximately ₩126 million KRW (about $92,800 USD). Lee and his co-defendants were accused of manipulating the share prices of KOSDAQ-listed companies by creating the impression that the companies were pursuing new businesses or had secured major investments.
They were also accused of repeatedly buying and selling shares in ways intended to artificially influence their market prices.
In handing down its decision, the court emphasized the seriousness of market manipulation, stating that such conduct distorts the market’s ability to form fair prices and can cause harm to ordinary investors.
However, Lee was acquitted of a separate charge under the Attorney-at-Law Act. While the court acknowledged that he had received money, it found insufficient evidence that he had personally accepted it in exchange for improper solicitation. He was also acquitted of some of the alleged market-manipulation acts due to insufficient evidence.
Another defendant in the case, a former prosecution investigator also surnamed Lee, received a significantly heavier sentence of 10 years in prison, a ₩24.0 billion KRW (about $17.7 million USD) fine, and a forfeiture order of approximately ₩6.01 billion KRW (about $4.45 million USD).
The case has drawn additional attention because of Lee’s relationship with one of Korea’s best-known celebrity families. Lee Seung Gi married actress Lee Da In, Kyeon Mi Ri’s daughter, in 2023. However, in April 2025, Lee Seung Gi publicly addressed the controversy surrounding his father-in-law and announced that he and Lee Da In had decided to cut ties with her family.
He said at the time that the trust between the families had been damaged to a point that was difficult to repair.
“After much consideration, my wife and I have decided to sever our relationship with her family.”