South Korea’s already jailed former president just saw one of his prison terms get longer. An appeals court on Wednesday boosted Yoon Suk Yeol’s sentence from five to seven years over his attempt to block his own arrest during his brief 2024 declaration of martial law, reports Reuters. The Seoul High Court found Yoon guilty of additional offenses, including deploying the presidential security service “like a private army” to stop authorities from enforcing an arrest warrant, falsifying official documents, and bypassing the legal process required for declaring martial law, which must be debated in a formal Cabinet meeting, per the AP.
A judge said Yoon’s actions were incompatible with a society governed by law, per Reuters. Prosecutors had asked for 10 years, accusing Yoon of abusing state power and damaging constitutional order. Yoon’s lawyers called the ruling “incomprehensible” and said they’d appeal to the nation’s Supreme Court, arguing that the court treated political decisions as criminal acts. Yoon “showed little emotion” as the verdict was handed down, per AFP. The 65-year-old, removed from office via impeachment last year and jailed since July, faces eight trials in total and separately received a life sentence in February for allegedly orchestrating an insurrection, Reuters notes. He denies all wrongdoing.