A Seoul court has recognized that three of the bank accounts utilized in the manipulation of stock prices of Deutsch Motors belonged to First Lady Kim Keon-hee.

According to the legal sector on Monday, the Seoul Central District Court considered most of the transactions by former Deutsch Motors head Kwon Oh-soo after October 2010 as stock manipulation last Friday. 

In handing a suspended prison sentence to Kwon after he was found guilty of manipulating the company's stock prices, the court also noted that three of the bank accounts involved belonged to Kim and one to her mother.

The presidential office made clear that no new evidence has emerged to support allegations that the first lady was involved in the case, saying via a statement that the latest detail has already been mentioned repeatedly in media reports since the investigation began.

The office went on to say even if Kim’s accounts were used, the first lady had not been involved in manipulating prices or colluding to that end, citing that two former justice ministers were not able to pursue indictment even after the case was probed for more than two years.