Former South Korean leader Yoon sentenced to life in prison

Yoon suddenly declared war conditions during a TV address December 2024, saying drastic measures were needed to eradicate “antistate forces” at the South Korean National Assembly.

The hardline contractor Yoon, 65, was later prosecuted, arrested and charged with various crimes, including sedition and obstruction of justice.

Chief Judge Ji Gwi-yeon said Yoon sent troops to the Assembly building in an effort to silence political opponents who had hampered his efforts to govern.

The court finds that the goal was to paralyse the Assembly for a considerable period of”, Ji said at the Seoul Central District Court.

“The declaration of the war situation resulted with major social consequences, and it is difficult to find any indication that the defendant has expressed regret over this”, the judge said.

We condemn Yoon to life imprisonment”

Former Defence Minister Kim Jong-hyun was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the crisis.

Prosecutors demanded the harshest sentence for sedition against Yoon, and at hearings in January demanded that he be sentenced to death.

South Korea has an unofficialcapatorium for capital punishment. The last prisoners were executed in 1997. So a death sentence effectively leaves Yoon behind bars forever.

Thousands of supporters gathered outside the court building before the verdict, holding slogans such as “Yo grando reunite” or “drop charges against President Yoon”.

The crowds cheered when the prison car transported the former president to court.

Security forces were deployed near the court to suppress any turmoil.

Besides that sentence, Yoon had already been sentenced to five years in prison for other charges, while other senior officials were also sentenced to severe prison sentences. / REL/