TOKYO, January 24 - RAPSI. The Seoul Central District Court has sentenced Lee Sang-Deuk, 77, the elder brother of President Lee Myung-Bak, to two years in prison and a fine equaling the sum he accepted in bribes, the Yonhap news agency reports.

According to the case documents, Lee Sang-Deuk, a former member of parliament, received approximately 750 million Korean Won (around $654,000) from the financially ailing banks Solomon Savings Bank and Mirae Savings Bank.

He was paid to help them avoid a planned audit and inevitable sanctions.

Yonhap writes that Lee Sang-Deuk is the first relative of an incumbent president in the country's history to receive a prison sentence. South Koreans also believe that Lee Sang-Deuk may have been involved in the bankruptcy of several banks over the past few years.