South Korea's former president Yoon gets five years in jail over martial law
- Last updated: January 16, 2026 | 20:00 ..
A South Korean court sentenced former president Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison on Friday in the first verdict from eight criminal trials over the martial law debacle that forced him out of office and other allegations.
Yoon was 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.
The most significant criminal charge against him alleges that his martial law enforcement amounted to a rebellion. An independent counsel has requested the death sentence over that charge, and the Seoul Central District Court will decide on that in a ruling on Feb.19.
Yoon has maintained 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 obstructing 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.
In Friday's case, the Seoul court sentenced Yoon for defying attempts to detain him and fabricating the martial law proclamation. He was also sentenced for sidestepping a legally mandated full cabinet meeting, which deprived some cabinet members who were not convened of their rights to deliberate on his decree.
Judge Baek Dae-hyun said in the televised ruling that imposing "a heavy punishment" was necessary because Yoon hasn't shown remorse and has only repeated "hard-to-comprehend excuses."
The judge also said restoring legal systems damaged by Yoon's action was necessary.
Yoon's defence team said they will appeal the ruling, which they believe was "politicised" and reflected "the unliberal arguments by the independent counsel." Yoon's defence team argued the ruling "oversimplified the boundary between the exercise of the president's constitutional powers and criminal liability."
Park SungBae, a lawyer who specialises in criminal law, said there is little chance the court would decide Yoon should face the death penalty in the rebellion case. He said the court will likely issue a life sentence or a sentence of 30 years or more in prison.
South Korea has maintained a de facto moratorium on executions since 1997 and courts rarely hand down death sentences. Park said the court would take into account that Yoon's decree didn't cause casualties and didn't last long, although Yoon hasn't shown genuine remorse for his action.
Associated Press