Seoul: A special counsel team has requested a five-year prison sentence for former President Yoon Suk Yeol. The charges against him involve allegedly helping a former defense minister avoid a criminal investigation by appointing him as the ambassador to Australia in 2023.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the special counsel, Lee Myeong-hyeon's team, made the sentencing request during the final hearing of Yoon's trial at the Seoul Central District Court. The charges include aiding a criminal's flight and abuse of power. Yoon is accused of appointing former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup as the ambassador to Australia in November 2023 to help him evade an investigation related to the alleged cover-up of a Marine's death earlier that year.
A key allegation in the case is that Yoon applied pressure to alter the findings of a Marine inquiry into the death of Corporal Chae Su-geun. Chae died in July 2023 during a rescue operation in Yecheon, about 160 kilometers southeast of Seoul. It is alleged that during this period, Yoon pressured a reversal of the inquiry's findings to absolve a Marine commander of responsibility. The former defense minister, who was in contact with Yoon, is suspected of being sent abroad to prevent the investigation from implicating him.
In addition to Yoon, the special counsel team has recommended three-year prison terms for former National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong and former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae. Two-year terms have been recommended for former First Vice Foreign Minister Chang Ho-jin, former Vice Justice Minister Shim Woo-jung, and former presidential secretary Lee Shi-won. These individuals are accused of being complicit in the appointment and subsequent departure of the former defense minister to Australia under Yoon's orders.
The controversy led to the former defense minister's return from Australia shortly after taking office in March 2024. The special counsel's team criticized the defendants for ignoring the truth, stating that they executed a perfunctory vetting process to lift Lee's travel ban. The team emphasized that this was a deliberate act to conceal the truth and not a coincidental outcome.
The special counsel criticized Yoon for using state powers for personal and political objectives, particularly in the lead-up to parliamentary elections. They accused him of flagrantly violating the state's investigative authority.
Yoon is currently facing a total of eight trials related to his attempted imposition of martial law in 2024, his wife's alleged corruption, and the Marine death case. His main trial for leading an insurrection through his martial law bid is ongoing at an appellate court after receiving a life sentence from a lower court in February.