Key facts
- Former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
- The court found Park guilty of insurrection and abusing his power.
- Park's conviction relates to his role in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's 2024 martial law imposition.
- Park instructed officials to assess detention capacities and review prosecutor dispatch.
- Yoon Suk Yeol was previously sentenced to life in prison for rebellion charges.
A former South Korean justice minister was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Monday after a court found him guilty of helping ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol carry out his brief imposition of martial law in 2024.
The Seoul Central District Court stated that Park Sung-jae played a key role in Yoon’s attempted power grab following the declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024. This included ordering ministry officials to assess detention capacities at correctional facilities for potential arrests and to review the dispatch of state prosecutors to support the martial law command. Park also instructed immigration authorities to be prepared for possible travel bans.
Yoon's martial law, which followed a standoff with the legislature, lasted only about six hours before lawmakers overturned it. Judge Lee Jin-gwan said Park abandoned his constitutional responsibilities by participating in Yoon’s authoritarian push.
Park denied the charges, claiming he was fulfilling duties during a national emergency. His lawyers have not yet stated if they will appeal.
Yoon was impeached and suspended on December 14, 2024, and formally removed by the Constitutional Court in April 2025. He was arrested in July 2025, with multiple trials ongoing. Yoon previously received a life sentence for rebellion charges and a 30-year term for allegedly ordering drone flights over Pyongyang to justify martial law.
Park is one of several former Cabinet members to receive prison sentences. Former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun received two 30-year sentences, and ex-Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's sentence was reduced from 23 years to 15 on appeal.