Prosecutors Seek 10-Year Term for Ex-President Yoon in Obstruction Case

South Korean special prosecutors on Friday requested a 10-year prison sentence for former President Yoon Suk Yeol, accusing him of obstructing justice and abusing power in the aftermath of his short-lived declaration of martial law in December 2024.

The request came during closing arguments in the first of Yoon's criminal trials at the Seoul Central District Court, focusing on his resistance to an arrest warrant issued in January 2025. Prosecutors alleged that Yoon barricaded himself inside the presidential residence for weeks, preventing investigators from detaining him and creating a standoff that heightened national tensions. They also charged him with bypassing a required Cabinet meeting before imposing martial law on December 3, 2024, infringing on the constitutional rights of nine ministers to deliberate and vote on the decree. Additional accusations included fabricating the martial law proclamation, ordering the deletion of secure phone records from aides, and disseminating false information to foreign media.

Yoon, who has denied all wrongdoing, maintained that his actions were lawful efforts to counter opposition from the Democratic Party, which he accused of obstructing...