Seoul Court Convicts Ousted President Yoon — A Seoul court found former President Yoon Suk Yeol guilty of making false statements during his 2022 campaign and sentenced him to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years. The ruling could force the People Power Party to return about 40 billion won in state campaign reimbursements if upheld on appeal. Yoon remains in custody and faces multiple other criminal trials tied to his December 2024 martial law declaration and related charges.
Seoul Court Convicts Ousted President Yoon; 18-Month Prison Term Suspended For Three Years
FILE - South Korea's ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol arrives to attend his trial at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, South Korea, May 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, Pool, File)
Seoul, South Korea (AP) — A Seoul court has convicted former President Yoon Suk Yeol of making false statements during his 2022 presidential campaign and sentenced him to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years. The verdict is the latest in a series of criminal rulings against the ousted leader following his removal from office last year after a brief declaration of martial law.
Court Ruling and Legal Reasoning
The Seoul Central District Court said Yoon's false statements during the campaign may have affected voters' “fair judgment” and therefore violated South Korea's election law. The court identified two key instances: a January 2022 interview in which Yoon downplayed his relationship with a fortune teller, and a December 2021 news conference in which he denied having introduced a defense attorney to a former Seoul tax official under investigation in 2012 while Yoon served as a state prosecutor.
The court noted that the fortune teller was later convicted of acting as an intermediary between Yoon's wife, Kim Keon Hee, and the Unification Church, which prosecutors say allegedly bribed her in return for political favors.
Political And Financial Consequences
If the conviction is upheld on appeal, the ruling could have major financial repercussions for Yoon's conservative People Power Party. Under South Korean law, candidates who receive more than 15% of the vote are eligible for state reimbursement of campaign expenses; those funds must be returned if a candidate is convicted of an election-law violation punishable by a fine of 1 million won or greater. The party could be required to repay roughly 40 billion won (about $27 million) it received after Yoon's narrow 2022 victory.
Broader Legal Context
This case is one of seven criminal trials Yoon faces. He remains in custody and has appealed several convictions. Notably, he was sentenced in February to life in prison on a rebellion charge related to his attempted power grab — a verdict he is appealing — and the Supreme Court earlier this month upheld a seven-year prison term for bypassing Cabinet deliberation and resisting arrest, the first of his cases to be finalized by the nation's highest court.
Background: Removal From Office And Martial Law
Yoon was removed from office in April 2025 after a brief martial law declaration on Dec. 3, 2024, that triggered the country's most serious political crisis in decades. The late-night decree lasted only a few hours after lawmakers forced a repeal by breaking through a blockade of armed forces at the National Assembly, prompting the Cabinet to lift the measure.
Yoon has denied the charges. His lawyers say they will appeal the latest verdict, arguing it rests on a misinterpretation of both the facts and election law. The People Power Party has not issued an immediate comment on the ruling.
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