South Korea's ex-President Yoon sentenced to 5 years in prison

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to five years in prison Friday on charges that included the obstruction of investigators' attempt to detain him last year.

1news.media reports, citing Yonhap, the Seoul Central District Court handed down the sentence in the first ruling on charges stemming from Yoon's short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024.

Chief among the charges in Friday's case was that the then president had ordered the Presidential Security Service to block investigators from executing a warrant to detain him at the official presidential residence in January last year.

Judge Baek Dae-hyun, the presiding judge, chastised Yoon during the hearing attended by the jailed former president and televised live.

"He effectively privatized the armed forces through the public servants of the Presidential Security Service who are loyal to the Republic of Korea for his personal safety and interests," he said.

"Considering the need to restore the rule of law damaged by the defendant's crimes, a severe punishment that matches the guilt is necessary."