Former South Korean justice minister sentenced to 25-year prison term for role in martial law debacle

A South Korean court handed down a 25-year prison sentence to former justice minister Park Sung-jae on Monday, finding him guilty of involvement in an "insurrection" related to ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law in 2024, according to a recording of the verdict shared online.

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The Seoul Central District Court's verdict was based on Park's role in the events surrounding Yoon's martial law declaration, which lasted only about six hours in December 2024 before being voted down by lawmakers in an emergency session.

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Yoon, who has since been convicted of leading an insurrection, is currently in detention while appealing a life sentence, and was also given a 30-year jail term this month for sending drones to North Korea to "manufacture a national crisis" and justify his martial law declaration.

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Prosecutors stated that Park had held a meeting with justice ministry officials after the martial law declaration, during which he checked on prison capacity in preparation for potential arrests of anti-government figures.

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Presiding judge Lee Jin-gwan noted that Park's actions had brought the country to the brink of a situation in which the people's fundamental rights and the basic order of liberal democracy could have been violated.

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According to Judge Lee, Park had "ignored the various opinions that had been raised at the meeting regarding the illegality of the Dec 3 insurrection" while serving as justice minister.

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Prosecutors had sought a 20-year sentence for Park, arguing that he had "reduced the law to a tool of insurrection in his abuse of power and posed a challenge to the rule of law".

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Following the ruling, Park, who had been standing trial without detention, was taken into custody.

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Yoon's late-night national televised address had plunged South Korea into an unprecedented political crisis, triggering protests, sending the stock market plunging, and catching key allies such as the United States off guard.

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A number of Yoon's subordinates have received hefty sentences, including former prime minister Han Duck-soo, who is serving a 15-year prison sentence, and former interior minister Lee Sang-min, who was jailed for nine years.

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Former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun was sentenced to three years in prison last week for revealing classified military information in furtherance of the insurrection.

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Yoon's wife, Kim Keon Hee, is also serving a four-year term for stock manipulation and bribery unrelated to the martial law fiasco.