Special counsel seeks 10-year term for Yoon

A special counsel has asked an appeals court to sentence former President Yoon Suk Yeol to 10 years in prison for obstructing an arrest attempt during the Dec. 3 martial law episode, prosecutors said April 6. The request is the same as in the first trial, where Yoon was sentenced to five years.

The Seoul High Court concluded final arguments in Yoon’s appeal on charges including obstruction of official duties. The case is the first among those handled by the insurrection special counsel to reach this stage.

In closing arguments, the special counsel team led by Cho Eun-seok said Yoon used his presidential authority and state resources to undermine the constitutional order, calling the offense serious. Prosecutors also said Yoon shifted responsibility onto subordinates, rejecting their accounts while continuing to claim he had been wronged. They argued the five-year sentence handed down in the first trial did not reflect the gravity of the charges and urged the court to impose a 10-year term. Yoon’s legal team denied all allegations in its final statement.


송혜미 기자 1am@donga.com