A special counsel team has indicted People Power Party lawmaker Kim Gi-hyeon and his wife on charges of violating the anti-graft law for allegedly giving a luxury handbag to former first lady Kim Keon-hee.

The team, led by special counsel Min Joong-ki, said Saturday that Kim and his spouse were indicted without detention on charges of breaching the anti-graft law.

The couple is accused of giving the former first lady a clutch bag worth two-point-67 million won, or about 18-hundred dollars, on March 17, 2023.

Kim Keon-hee is alleged to have colluded with a shaman to recruit Unification Church members to join the PPP in support of Rep. Kim's bid for party leadership.

The special counsel described the case as a "power-related corruption scandal," calling it an instance in which the leader of a ruling party allegedly provided a luxury item to the president's spouse in exchange for benefits tied to his leadership campaign.

However, the special counsel decided to transfer the investigation into alleged bribery involving former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife to the National Police Agency's National Office of Investigation.

The team said that due to limited time and a lack of cooperation from key figures, it would hand the case over to police for further investigation into the circumstances surrounding the gift, including whether it involved solicitation, a quid pro quo arrangement, or any intervention by the president.