Jang Yun-jeong's mother gets 10-month prison term for fraud using singer's name

A woman surnamed Yook, 70, the mother of singer Jang Yun-jeong, was sentenced to prison in her first trial. She had been accused of swindling about 30 million won ($22,400) from an acquaintance. The court noted that Yook had previously received summary orders for fraud and criticized her, saying, "The nature of the offense is bad." Yook wept silently that day without saying a word.

According to Yonhap, Judge Seo Beom-jun of the Seoul Eastern District Court's Criminal Division 2 sentenced Yook on Thursday. Yook had been detained on fraud charges and received a 10-month prison term.

"She has admitted and confessed to the criminal facts, and looking at the victim's statement and the defendant's account transaction records, all the charges are found guilty," Judge Seo said. "Considering the method and the outcome, the nature of the offense is bad, and the victim has not been compensated."

Yook is accused of receiving 31 million won from an acquaintance in three installments between September 2024 and August 2025, under the guise of investment. She cited her daughter, the well-known singer Jang, during the scheme.

Yook was also found to have deceived the victim by falsely claiming that celebrities, too, were investing and earning substantial returns.

The court cited as unfavorable factors that Yook had served a prison term in 2018 for failing to repay more than 400 million won she had borrowed from an acquaintance. It also noted that she had recently received another summary order for fraud.

However, the court said it took into account Yook's admission of the crime and her poor health in determining the sentence.

Yook sobbed quietly without speaking both before and after the sentencing that day.

Earlier, at Yook's first trial on Aug. 27, prosecutors sought a one-year-and-six-month prison term. They said, "Despite having a prior record of receiving a prison sentence for fraud using a similar method, she committed this offense again."

At the time, Yook's side pleaded for leniency, saying, "We deeply regret this. She needed money for living expenses and credit card payments, and the swindled funds were also spent on living expenses."