A South Korean court on Friday sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison for obstructing justice and other crimes linked to his disastrous martial law declaration and its chaotic aftermath.
The judgment is said to be the first in a series of verdicts for the disgraced ex-leader, whose brief suspension of civilian rule in South Korea on December 3, 2024, prompted massive protests and a showdown in parliament.
Yoon, now removed from power, is facing multiple trials for actions taken during that debacle and in the turmoil that followed.
Judge Baek Dae-hyun at Seoul’s Central District Court said on Friday that he found Yoon guilty of obstruction of justice by blocking investigators from detaining him.
According to the judgment, Yoon was also found guilty of excluding cabinet members from a martial law planning meeting.
“Despite having a duty, above all others, to uphold the Constitution and observe the rule of law as president, the defendant instead displayed an attitude that disregarded the… Constitution,”
“The defendant’s culpability is extremely grave,” Baek said.
The judge added that Yoon was not guilty of forging official documents due to a lack of evidence, stressing that has seven days to appeal.
Prosecutors had called for a 10-year prison term, while Yoon had insisted no law was broken.