South Korean prosecutors seek death penalty for ousted president Yoon

Prosecutors in South Korea asked a high court on Thursday to sentence former President Yoon Suk Yeol to death.

The special prosecutor’s office, led by Cho Eun-suk, filed the request ahead of a ruling on Yoon’s appeal against a life sentence. That original verdict came from the Central District Court in Seoul in February. It covered charges of rebellion related to his brief imposition of martial law in December 2024.

Cho’s team argued that only the death penalty would ensure Yoon faces full accountability for orchestrating a rebellion. They maintained that the country’s long pause in carrying out executions should not stop courts from imposing such sentences. South Korea has not executed a prisoner since 1997, creating a de facto moratorium on capital punishment.

The Seoul High Court has not yet set a date for its decision on the appeal. In February, the lower court ruled that Yoon illegally mobilized troops and police. The court said he moved to seize control of the National Assembly and detain political opponents. It found he aimed to establish a government without checks for a considerable time.

Yoon’s legal team told reporters that the prosecutors were repeating an argument lacking evidence and legal logic. His lawyers stated that the martial law was intended to alert the public to what Yoon viewed as the opposition-led National Assembly’s attempts to paralyze state affairs. They added that Yoon did not intend to cause harm or install an authoritarian government.

Yoon announced the martial law decree late on December 3, 2024. The measure lasted only a few hours. It ended when a quorum of lawmakers broke through a blockade of armed soldiers and police at the assembly. They voted to revoke the order, forcing Yoon’s cabinet to lift it.

The National Assembly, led by progressives, impeached Yoon on December 14, 2024, suspending him from office. The Constitutional Court formally removed him in April 2025. He was detained again in July 2025. He now faces multiple criminal trials stemming from the martial law episode and other allegations. The rebellion charge carries the most severe potential punishment.

Yoon also appealed a separate 30-year prison sentence in a case accusing him of ordering drone flights in 2024. Prosecutors claim he used those flights to deliberately raise tensions with North Korea to create a pretext for martial law. His lawyers argued the flights were a response to North Korea sending thousands of trash balloons into the South.