A South Korean court on Friday sentenced former President Yoon Suk-Yeol to five years in prison, delivering the first criminal verdict stemming from his failed attempt to impose martial law in December 2024, an extraordinary episode that rattled one of Asia’s most stable democracies and abruptly ended his presidency.
The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Yoon illegally obstructed justice by deploying the presidential security service to block investigators from executing a court-approved arrest warrant issued as part of a criminal probe into his martial law declaration.
Judges also found him guilty of fabricating official documents and bypassing constitutional and legal procedures required for invoking martial law, violations the court said struck at the core of democratic governance.
In sharply worded remarks delivered during televised proceedings, the court said Yoon had weaponized the authority of his office for personal protection rather than public duty.
“The defendant abused his enormous influence as president to prevent the execution of legitimate warrants,” the presiding judge said, adding that Yoon had effectively turned state security personnel, sworn to serve the Republic of Korea, into a private shield against the law.
