Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol sentenced to five years in first ruling tied to the 2024 martial law decree.

In January 2026, a South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison - the first verdict among multiple criminal cases linked to his controversial December 2024 martial law decree. The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Yoon committed serious abuses of power connected to the events surrounding the martial law order, including actions related to resisting or obstructing lawful investigative steps and irregularities in how the decree was handled procedurally. The court said the conduct represented a grave breach of constitutional norms and public trust, and the presiding judge cited Yoon’s lack of remorse as a factor supporting a heavy sentence. Yoon’s legal team said he would appeal, while prosecutors and investigators continued pursuing additional cases stemming from the same crisis. The ruling became a defining legal milestone in South Korea’s most severe political upheaval in decades, underscoring how the 2024 decree escalated from a political shock into a sprawling set of courtroom battles. • Sentence: 5 years (first verdict among multiple trials) • Linked event: December 2024 martial law decree • Next: Appeals process + further trials still pending Other Charges: Yoon remains under investigation for approximately eight criminal cases, including allegations of ordering drone flights over North Korea to provoke a crisis that would justify his martial law decree.