The Seoul Central District Court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison on Friday for charges including obstruction of justice. This marks the first ruling related to his short-lived martial law declaration in December 2024. The sentence is half of the 10 years requested by special counsel.
The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 25 (Presiding Judge Baek Dae-hyun) sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison on January 16 for charges including obstructing the execution of an arrest warrant. The primary charge involved Yoon ordering the Presidential Security Service to block investigators from detaining him at the presidential residence in January 2025, following his brief martial law declaration in December 2024.
Judge Baek Dae-hyun criticized Yoon during the live-televised hearing, stating, "He effectively privatized the armed forces through the public servants of the Presidential Security Service who are loyal to the Republic of Korea for his personal safety and interests." He added, "Considering the need to restore the rule of law damaged by the defendant's crimes, a severe punishment that matches the guilt is necessary."
Additional charges included violating the rights of nine Cabinet members not consulted on the martial law plan (guilty on seven), drafting and destroying a revised proclamation after the decree's lift, and ordering the deletion of records from secure phones used by military commanders. The court acquitted him on the rights of two Cabinet members and ordering false press statements.
Special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team had sought 10 years, calling it a "grave crime" of "privatizing" state institutions to conceal acts. The court considered Yoon's lack of prior offenses as mitigating but noted the "very bad" nature of the crimes and his lack of remorse. Yoon appeared nervous during the reading. His lawyers announced an immediate appeal, saying the ruling "oversimplifies the boundary between the exercise of a president's constitutional authority and criminal liability."
The decision upholds the Corruption Investigation Office's authority in the case. It may influence the February 19 verdict on insurrection charges, where special prosecutors seek the death penalty. Yoon faces eight trials total, including on his wife's corruption and a 2023 Marine's death. This is the third live broadcast of a former president's sentencing, following Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak in 2018.
