SEOUL, January 16. /TASS/. A court of first instance sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol to five years in prison for obstructing arrest, according to a broadcast of the hearing by Yonhap News TV.
On January 3, 2025, the presidential security service prevented law enforcement agencies from arresting Yoon Suk-yeol at his residence in Seoul. They succeeded only on their second attempt on January 15, 2025. At that time, he was still regarded as the incumbent president, but his powers had been suspended following impeachment by parliament. Prosecutors had sought a 10 year prison sentence. South Korea’s court system for cases of general jurisdiction consists of three tiers, including appellate courts and the Supreme Court.
Yoon Suk-yeol is facing a total of eight trials, four of them related to the imposition of martial law. On January 13, 2026, a special prosecutor’s team requested the death penalty in a separate case involving rebellion against the state. This article of the criminal code envisions only the death penalty or life imprisonment. On December 3, 2024, Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law in violation of the constitution, after which he was removed from office by the Constitutional Court in April.
