A South Korean court on Thursday sentenced former president Yoon Suk Yeol to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of leading an insurrection linked to his controversial declaration of martial law in 2024.
The ruling was delivered by Judge Ji Gwi-yeon at the Seoul Central District Court, who said Yoon had attempted to paralyse the National Assembly by deploying troops to the legislative building in a bid to silence political opponents.
“The court finds that the intention was to paralyse the assembly for a considerable period,” Judge Ji said, adding that the declaration of martial law had resulted in “enormous social costs” and that there was little indication the former president had shown remorse.
Yoon, 65, had abruptly declared martial law during a televised address on December 3, 2024, claiming drastic measures were necessary to eliminate what he termed “anti-state forces” within South Korea’s National Assembly.
The move triggered widespread political turmoil, leading to his impeachment, arrest and prosecution on charges including insurrection and obstruction of justice.
Prosecutors had sought the death penalty, the harshest punishment available under South Korean law for insurrection.
However, although capital punishment remains on the books, South Korea has maintained an unofficial moratorium on executions since 1997, making life imprisonment effectively the maximum enforceable sentence.
Former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun was also sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the crisis.
Outside the courthouse in Seoul, thousands of Yoon’s supporters gathered ahead of the verdict, holding placards reading “Yoon Great Again” and “Drop the charge against President Yoon.”
Police in neon jackets erected barricades using buses parked nose-to-tail around the complex to prevent unrest as a blue prison bus believed to be carrying the former president entered the premises.
South Korea, long regarded as a stable democracy in Asia, was shaken by Yoon’s failed attempt to impose military rule — a move that revived painful memories of the country’s military coups between 1960 and 1980.
Martial law was lifted just six hours after it was declared, when lawmakers rushed to the assembly building and held an emergency vote to overturn it.
Staff barricaded doors with office furniture to block armed troops from entering.
The episode sparked flash protests, rattled financial markets and caught key allies, including the United States, off guard.
Yoon has consistently denied wrongdoing, arguing he acted to “safeguard freedom” and counter what he described as an opposition-driven “legislative dictatorship.” Prosecutors, however, accused him of orchestrating an insurrection driven by a “lust for power aimed at dictatorship and long-term rule.”
In a separate case earlier this year, his wife, Kim Keon Hee, was sentenced to 20 months in prison on unrelated bribery charges stemming from her time as first lady.
Yoon has been held in solitary confinement as he continues to fight multiple criminal trials.
