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Eat, rinse, repeat: Ex-President Yoon returns to jail cell, prison meals after verdict

Published: 19 Feb. 2026, 18:14 Updated: 19 Feb. 2026, 19:46

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol is seen during a hearing at Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul on Feb. 19. Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment for leading an insurrection in relation to the Dec. 3, 2024 declaration of emergency martial law. [SEOUL CENTRAL DISTRICT COURT]

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol returned to a jail cell on Thursday as a life-term inmate after a court sentenced him to life in prison for leading an insurrection for his Dec. 3, 2024 declaration of emergency martial law.

Yoon was taken back to the Seoul Detention Center, where he had previously been held during earlier periods of custody. He will spend his first night as a convicted prisoner there, though the ruling is not yet final. If he appeals, he will remain at the facility until higher courts decide the case. The other trials he faces are expected to continue.

His first dinner after sentencing was a standard inmate meal: perilla seed seaweed soup, braised tteokgalbi (short rib patties) with vegetables, multigrain rice and napa cabbage kimchi.

Earlier in the day, the detention center served noodles with seasoned sauce and a hot bar for lunch. Breakfast consisted of beef bone soup and seasoned dried radish strips. Meals at the facility are distributed at designated times and eaten in individual housing units. Inmates are required to wash their own dishes.

Although Yoon received a first sentence, the ruling is not yet final. If he files an appeal, he will remain at the Seoul Detention Center until the verdict is finalized. Other ongoing trials are also likely to proceed concurrently.

Attention is now focused on what position Yoon will take following the sentencing. During two previous periods of detention in January and August last year, he released statements while in and out of custody.

Through his legal team, Yoon issued messages defending the legitimacy of his declaration of martial law, drawing criticism from political circles for engaging in what some described as “politics from detention.”

A bus carrying former President Yoon Suk Yeol leaves for Seoul Detention Center after the Seoul Central District Court hearing on Feb. 19. [YONHAP]

“The declaration of emergency martial law was solely intended to prevent the collapse of the constitutional order of Korea and to normalize state functions amid national governance turmoil equivalent to a state of emergency,” Yoon said in a statement issued after violence at the Seoul Western District Court in January last year.

The message emphasized the background and necessity of the declaration, justifying the imposition of martial law.

In July last year, after being re-detained as part of a special counsel investigation on the insurrection, Yoon commented on a summons issued to his wife, former first lady Kim Keon Hee.

“Absurd political persecution should stop with me alone,” Yoon wrote. At the time, his lawyers characterized the investigation as politically motivated.

A meal schedule table for the third week of February at Seoul Detention Center, where former President Yoon Suk Yeol will return to after being sentenced to life imprisonment on Feb. 19, is seen in this photo obtained by the JoongAng Ilbo [JOONGANG ILBO]

Yoon’s conduct inside the detention center also sparked controversy on several occasions. In July last year, the special counsel attempted to bring him in for questioning, but the attempt failed. An arrest warrant was later issued and executed.

Reports that Yoon lay on the floor without wearing his prison uniform and did not cooperate with the warrant’s execution stirred public debate.

During the trial process, there were disputes over his health. Yoon failed to appear at hearings in the insurrection and obstruction-of-arrest cases, citing worsening chronic conditions including diabetes. Some hearings proceeded in his absence.

He also complained of deteriorating eyesight and other health issues. In October last year, he filed for bail, but the court rejected the request.

However, as key witness examinations progressed, Yoon returned to court and personally took part in his defense.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY SUK GYEONG-MIN [[email protected]]