A special counsel team on Friday urged the Seoul Central District Court to sentence former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol to 10 years in prison over charges linked to his controversial declaration of martial law in December 2024, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The sentencing request was made during the final hearing of Yoon’s obstruction of justice trial, marking the first time prosecutors have sought a prison term across the four cases he faces related to the failed martial law move.
Special counsel Cho Eun-suk’s team argued that Yoon committed a “grave crime” by abusing state institutions to conceal and justify his alleged wrongdoing, actions they said severely undermined constitutional order and public trust.
“The defendant’s actions seriously damaged the rule of law in the Republic of Korea and inflicted deep wounds on citizens who trusted him and elected him as president,” a member of the prosecution team told the court.
The prosecutors also criticised Yoon for maintaining during trial proceedings that his declaration of martial law was legitimate, rather than expressing remorse or offering an apology to the public.
The case centres on allegations that Yoon obstructed justice by preventing investigators from detaining him in January, violated the rights of nine Cabinet members by excluding them from a meeting reviewing the martial law plan, and drafted — then destroyed — a revised proclamation after the decree was revoked.
He is also accused of ordering the release of press statements containing false information about the martial law declaration and directing the deletion of records from secure mobile phones used by senior military commanders at the time.
By individual charge, prosecutors sought five years’ imprisonment for obstructing his detention, three years for violating Cabinet members’ rights, disseminating false information to foreign media and destroying phone records, and two years for drafting the revised proclamation.
“In order to restore constitutional order and prevent future abuses of power by those at the highest level of authority, strict accountability is essential,” the special counsel team said.
Yoon is facing three additional trials related to his short-lived martial law declaration, including charges that he led an insurrection.
The obstruction of justice case is expected to be the first to conclude, with the court previously indicating that a verdict is likely on Jan 16, just days before Yoon’s arrest warrant expires. The court rejected defence arguments to delay the ruling until after the insurrection trial concludes.
The trial proceedings are expected to wrap up in early January, with a verdict anticipated by February. Yoon was formally charged earlier this year with leading an insurrection over his attempted imposition of martial law.
