Friend of ousted S. Korean president gets 20 years in jail

Choi Soon-sil, center, a confidante of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, South Korea, Feb. 13, 2018. [Photo: AP/Ahn Young-joon]

A South Korean court on Tuesday sentenced Choi Soon-sil, a longtime friend of ousted President Park Geun-hye, to 20 years in prison for multiple charges including abuse of power and extortion.

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Choi, who is at the center of the influence-peddling scandal that led to the impeachment of former President Park, to a 20-year imprisonment, according to local media reports.

The decades-long confidante of the impeached president was taken into custody in November 2016, and indicted in the same month for 18 counts of corruption.

An Chong-bum, former senior secretary for Park, was sentenced to six years in jail as he was identified as accomplice to Choi and Park.

Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin got a jail term of two and a half years for bribery. Shin was immediately put under custody in the courtroom.