Ex-South Korea President Yoon sentenced to 5 years in prison on charges related to martial law decree

A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday on some charges related to his imposition of martial law.

The verdict is the first against Yoon in the eight criminal trials over the decree he issued in late 2024 and other allegations.

The most significant charge against him alleges that he led a rebellion in connection with his martial law enforcement and it carries a potential death penalty.

The Seoul Central District Court in the case decided Friday sentenced him for other charges like his defiance of authorities’ attempts to detain him.

Yoon hasn’t immediately publicly responded to the ruling.

But when an independent counsel earlier demanded a 10-year prison term for Yoon over those charges, Yoon’s defense team accused them of being politically driven and lacking legal grounds to demand such “an excessive” sentence.

Yoon has been impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024 triggered huge public protests calling for his ouster.

Yoon maintains he didn’t intend to place the country under military rule for an extended period, saying his decree was only meant to inform the people about the danger of the liberal-controlled parliament which obstructed his agenda.

But investigators have viewed Yoon’s decree as an attempt to bolster and prolong his rule, charging him with rebellion, abuse of power and other criminal offenses.