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Special Counsel Urges Death Penalty for Yoon Appeal

By Drooid · Oct 29, 2026 · How we work

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Summary

Special counsel recommended the death penalty for former President Yoon Suk Yeol in his appeal.
Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment in February after a first-instance court convicted him of insurrection.
Counsel also sought life imprisonment for Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and a 30-year term for Noh Sang-won.
Closing arguments are scheduled for November 5, after which the appellate court will set a ruling date.

History

Roh Tae-woo, who rose from a 1979 coup-supporting general to South Korea’s sixth president, was convicted in August 1996 for treason, mutiny and corruption and received a 17-year prison term, later pardoned in 1997 during Kim Young-sam’s anti-corruption drive. The special counsel’s 2024 death-penalty recommendation for former President Yoon Suk-yeol revives that precedent, intensifying scrutiny of the judiciary.

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Roh Tae-woo, who rose from a 1979 coup-supporting general to South Korea’s sixth president, was convicted in August 1996 for treason, mutiny and corruption and received a 17-year prison term, later pardoned in 1997 during Kim Young-sam’s anti-corruption drive. The special counsel’s 2024 death-penalty recommendation for former President Yoon Suk-yeol revives that precedent, intensifying scrutiny of the judiciary.

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