SEOUL – South Korea’s special counsel on Tuesday sought the death penalty for former impeached president on charges of insurrection, according to multiple local media.
The team of Cho Eun-suk, independent counsel in charge of Yoon’s insurrection and other relevant crimes, requested the death sentence for Yoon on the charge of orchestrating an insurrection by declaring an unconstitutional and illegal emergency martial law despite the absence of war or equivalent national emergencies.
The Seoul Central District Court was forecast to deliver a verdict on Feb 19, local media reported.
The court merged three trials last month for eight suspects, including Yoon on charges of ringleading the insurrection and seven senior military and police officials charged with performing critical duties in the insurrection.
The special counsel team on Tuesday sought life imprisonment for former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun, saying that Kim, a mastermind who planned and led the insurrection alongside Yoon by mobilizing the military, should inevitably face severe punishment given that his responsibility was immense.
The emergency martial law was declared by Yoon on the night of Dec 3 in 2024, but it was revoked hours later by the National Assembly.
The constitutional court upheld a motion to impeach Yoon in April last year, officially removing him from office.
The ousted leader was indicted under detention last January as a suspected ringleader of the insurrection, becoming the first sitting president to be arrested and indicted.