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FORMER South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, 65, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Thursday by the Seoul Central District Court for orchestrating an insurrection through the declaration of martial law, marking a dramatic end to his meteoric rise from prosecutor to the highest office in the land.
Once celebrated for his bold investigative career and diplomatic achievements, Yoon’s presidency became defined by scandal, political isolation, and a fateful overreach that ultimately led to his imprisonment.
Reuters cited people close to Yoon described him as a risk-taker whose ambition, cultivated during his tenure as a prosecutor investigating two incumbent presidents, eventually became his undoing.
“If I had gone to the military academy, I would have staged a coup,” recalled former judge Han Dong-soo, quoting Yoon during a 2020 dinner while he was still a powerful prosecutor.
Thursday’s ruling concluded that Yoon had indeed attempted to subvert constitutional order by deploying troops to storm parliament and detain his political opponents.
Appearing in court visibly slimmer and ashen-faced since his arrest a year ago, Yoon’s lawyer protested the verdict and indicated that the defence team would discuss the possibility of an appeal.
The former president has consistently denied wrongdoing, insisting his actions were intended as a warning against “anti-state” forces threatening South Korea’s democracy and freedom.
Yoon’s ascent had been swift and daring. As the nation’s top prosecutor, he gained prominence through high-profile graft investigations, including the probe of a sitting justice minister, earning widespread admiration among conservatives frustrated with the liberal policies of then-President Moon Jae-in.
“Yoon Suk Yeol was the most powerful prosecutor-general ever,” Han said, noting that Yoon leveraged the office as a springboard to presidential power.
Yet domestic governance proved far more challenging than international diplomacy.
While Yoon’s administration achieved notable foreign policy wins, including resolving long-standing disputes with Japan and fostering trilateral security cooperation with the United States, his tenure at home was beset by personal and political controversies.
Scandals surrounding his wife, Kim Keon Hee, including a bribery conviction leading to a 20-month prison sentence, compounded his political isolation, while opposition clashes stymied his legislative agenda.
Observers describe Yoon as having surrounded himself with advisers whose counsel contributed to his downfall.
Safety Minister Lee Sang-min and Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, both former schoolmates, were implicated in advising Yoon on the martial law declaration, with Lee serving a seven-year sentence and Kim facing trial for insurrection.
Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University, remarked that Yoon “probably still thinks he did the right thing” despite the life sentence, attributing his collapse to misplaced trust in advisers.
Yoon’s presidency had also faced unusual domestic scrutiny for symbolic actions, including relocating the presidential office from the traditional Blue House compound amid speculation about feng shui beliefs.
His perceived protection of loyalists, labelled as “yes men,” drew criticism following a national tragedy in which a Halloween crowd crush killed 159 people, further tarnishing his domestic reputation.
Once lauded for his charisma, including a memorable performance of “American Pie” for then-President Joe Biden in 2023, Yoon’s story now serves as a cautionary tale of political ambition, overreach, and the peril of mixing audacity with miscalculated counsel.
The former prosecutor’s foreign policy successes could not insulate him from the domestic consequences of declaring martial law, cementing a dramatic fall from grace for South Korea’s once-promising leader. - February 19, 2026