The verdict came down like a guillotine in Seoul. On Thursday, former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life imprisonment . The Seoul Central District Court found him guilty of "leading an insurrection" following his attempted constitutional coup in December 2024.

A final verdict for "insurrection"

Judge Ji Gwi-yeon was particularly harsh in his findings, stressing that the former leader's intention was to paralyze democratic institutions.

1. The reason: The illegal proclamation of martial law to silence Parliament.
2. The lack of remorse: The magistrate deplored the immense social cost of this crisis and the attitude of the accused, who expressed no regret.
3. The prosecution's demands: Although the prosecution sought the death penalty, the Court opted for life imprisonment (South Korea having not applied the death penalty since 1997).

A look back at the night of December 3, 2024

Everything changed in six hours. Invoking "hostile forces," Yoon Suk Yeol had deployed the army to lock down the National Assembly. In a scene worthy of an action movie, the members of parliament scaled the gates to vote against the measure and restore civil order.

This political earthquake triggered a chain reaction:

1. Yoon was suspended and then arrested .
2. Official removal from office in April 2025.
3. Early presidential election in June, won by his rival Lee Jae Myung.

A heavily sanctioned entourage

The former president is not the only one to fall. South Korean justice has come down hard on the inner circle of power at the time:

Accused	Function	Penalty
Kim Yong-hyun	Former Minister of Defence	30 years in prison
Han Duck-soo	Former Prime Minister	23 years in prison
Lee Sang-min	Former Minister of the Interior	7 years in prison

A divided nation

Despite his conviction, 65-year-old Yoon Suk Yeol maintains his defense: he claims he wanted to save the country from a "legislative dictatorship." On Thursday, thousands of supporters gathered outside the courthouse to demand his release, highlighting the persistent divisions within South Korean society.

Having already been sentenced to five years previously for related offenses, the former leader remains at the center of several other legal proceedings.