▲ Former President Yoon Suk Yeol attends his trial on charges of obstructing investigators from detaining him in January 2025 at the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul on Jan. 16, 2026, in this photo provided by the court. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

special counsel-ex-president

Special counsel appeals court ruling on ex-President Yoon's obstruction of justice charges

By Chae Yun-hwan

SEOUL, Jan. 22 (Yonhap) -- A special counsel team on Thursday appealed against a court ruling that sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison for obstructing investigators from detaining him following his failed martial law bid.

Last Friday, 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 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

Special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team, which had demanded a 10-year prison term, said it filed an appeal challenging the court's not-guilty verdicts on some of the charges, including Yoon's alleged orders to distribute false press statements.

The move comes after Yoon's legal team submitted an appeal against the ruling Monday, claiming the court had committed procedural errors and that evidence they had requested during the trial was dismissed without proper assessment.

Yoon is also on trial on charges of leading an insurrection through his declaration of martial law. Special prosecutors have demanded the death penalty over the insurrection charge, with a ruling scheduled for Feb. 19.

(END)

[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]