A local court has sentenced the mother-in-law of opposition presidential hopeful Yoon Seok-youl to three years in prison for operating a medical facility without being a medical professional and accepting billions of won in state subsidies for its operation.

The Uijeongbu District Court on Friday convicted the woman, surnamed Choi, of violating the country's medical law.

The court recognized Choi's active participation in the management of a nursing home she helped found with three others in 2013, despite not being a licensed medical professional.

The facility, located in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, received two-point-three billion won from the National Health Insurance Service while Choi was involved in its operation from February 2013 to May 2015.

Choi denied in court that she was engaged in the nursing home’s management or operation, saying she had only lent money and her name upon the request of an acquaintance.

Choi is standing in a separate trial at the same court on charges of forging account transactions during a real estate purchase.