South Korea’s former President Yoon Suk-yeol has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of masterminding an insurrection following his declaration of martial law in December 2024.

The Seoul Central District Court, in South Korea, delivered the verdict on Thursday, with Presiding Judge Ji Gwi-yeon stating that Yoon had “flouted legal procedures and resorted to violent means to try to incapacitate the National Assembly and undermine democratic norms.”

The judge was unsparing in his assessment of the disgraced 65-year-old leader.

“The declaration of martial law resulted in enormous social costs, and it is difficult to find any indication that the defendant has expressed remorse for that,” he said.

He then delivered the final blow, sentencing Yoon to life imprisonment.

 “We sentence Yoon to life imprisonment,” the judge stated.

 Prosecutors had pushed for the death penalty.

Yoon declared martial law on the night of December 3, 2024, branding the opposition-controlled National Assembly a den of criminals and claiming it was necessary to eliminate what he called anti-state forces.

His decree placed the media under military control, sent armed troops to raid the legislature, and banned all political activities.

Public outrage was swift and fierce. Citizens flooded the National Assembly, holding back troops while lawmakers inside voted down the decree within hours.

Yoon was forced to reverse course after just six hours.

On January 15, 2025, Yoon became the first sitting president to be arrested after a lengthy showdown with law enforcement officials.

Throughout the trial, Yoon maintained his innocence, dismissing the prosecution’s case as writing fiction and insisting his actions were a legitimate exercise of presidential authority.

The court, however, rejected that argument, though it also stopped short of accepting prosecutors’ claim that he had plotted to establish a long-term dictatorship.

He has one week to appeal the verdict.