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A friend of South Korean President Park Geun-hye at the center of a corruption scandal that led to Park's impeachment in parliament denied charges of fraud and abuse of power on Monday on the first day of her trial, Reuters reported.

Choi Soon-sil, 60, who had not appeared in public since arriving at a prosecutors' office on Oct. 31, is charged with pressuring big businesses to pay money to foundations that backed President Park's policy initiatives.

In a brief hearing, Choi denied all charges brought against her by prosecutors. Her lawyer argued that Choi did not collude with Park or other defendants in the case, and also denied the fraud charge, the source detailed.  The next hearing is set for December 29.

President Park was impeached on December 9 by an overwhelming majority of the South Korean National Assembly, 234 to 56 with six abstentions. But as South Korean President, Park is immune from prosecution. The country's Constitutional Court will now deliberate the impeachment motion, a process that could take up to 180 days.