SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — A South Korean judge sentences former president Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday to five years in prison for obstructing justice and other crimes linked to his disastrous martial law declaration and in its chaotic aftermath.
It is 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.
On Friday, Judge Baek Dae-hyun at Seoul’s Central District Court said he found Yoon guilty of obstruction of justice by blocking investigators from detaining him. 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,” Baek said. “The defendant’s culpability is extremely grave.”
Prosecutors had called for a 10-year prison term, while Yoon had insisted no law was broken. Yoon has seven days to appeal.
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