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Yoon's defense minister gets 30 years as others face prison, some are acquitted over martial law

Published: 19 Feb. 2026, 19:23 Updated: 19 Feb. 2026, 19:45

Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, left, was handed a 30-year prison sentence on Feb. 19. The same day, former National Police Agency Commissioner Cho Ji-ho was sentenced to 12 years behind bars. [JOINT PRESS CORPS, CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF KOREA]

As former President Yoon Suk Yeol was handed a life sentence for leading an insurrection over his declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, 2024, other key figures involved in planning and executing the measure were also given heavy prison terms on Thursday.

The court ruled that even those who were unaware of the martial law plan in advance could be punished as accomplices if they recognized the intent to undermine the constitutional order while participating in acts of violence.

Judge Ji Gwi-yeon, presiding over the hearing at the Seoul Central District Court on Thursday, sentenced former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun to 30 years and former Defense Intelligence Command chief Noh Sang-won to 18 years in prison, respectively, on charges including playing a key role in the insurrection and abuse of power.

Former National Police Agency Commissioner Cho Ji-ho, former Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency chief Kim Bong-sik and former National Assembly security head Mok Hyun-tae were sentenced to 12, 10 and three years in prison, respectively.

Cho, Kim Bong-sik and Mok were all indicted for participating in key insurrection-related duties, particularly the blockade of the National Assembly at the time of martial law. The court revoked Kim Bong-sik’s bail, granted in June last year, and remanded him and Mok into custody. Cho, however, was allowed to remain on bail due to his battle with leukemia.

Former National Office of Investigation planning chief Yoon Seung-young attends a first trial hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on April 16, 2025. He was indicted on charges of playing a key role in the Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration. [YONHAP]

By contrast, former National Office of Investigation planning chief Yoon Seung-young and former military police chief Kim Yong-gun of the 3rd Army were acquitted of charges of playing a key role in the insurrection.

“The core of this case is the deployment of troops to the National Assembly,” the court said. It found that the former president and his defense minister shared the objective of “blocking the Assembly and arresting key political figures in order to obstruct or paralyze the legislature’s functions for a considerable period.”

The court determined that the former defense minister led plans to deploy military and police forces during preparations for martial law and carried out practical measures including drafting the proclamation order, blocking the Assembly and operating arrest teams. It also said Kim Yong-hyun had “encouraged Yoon Suk Yeol’s irrational decision.”

Former Defense Intelligence Command chief Noh Sang-won, facing charges of playing a key role in the Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration, refuses to testify during a hearing in former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s trial on charges of leading an insurrection and abuse of power at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Dec. 8, 2025. [SEOUL CENTRAL DISTRICT COURT]

Although Noh was a civilian at the time, the court found that he wielded influence to mobilize intelligence personnel and was broadly involved in preparations for martial law, including plans to establish a “second investigation unit” to probe alleged election fraud.

The court also found Cho and Kim Bong-sik guilty of insurrection charges for mobilizing police forces to block the parliamentary building. Even if they only found out about the troop deployment and the martial law declaration on the same day, the court said it was enough that they understood — even without an explicit discussion — that the goal was to undermine the constitutional order.

“A conspiracy can be established not only through prior planning and shared intent from the outset, but also through the recognition of an objective during participation in acts of violence and the tacit communication of understanding,” the court said.

The judge pointed to evidence that the officials allowed soldiers into the National Assembly compound while blocking lawmakers and key staff — showing they understood the goal was to disrupt parliamentary operations.

Office workers watch a live television broadcast of former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s first trial verdict on charges including leading an insurrection at an office in Dalseo District, Daegu, on Feb. 19. [NEWS1]

As for Mok, the court said it was difficult to conclude that he had shared the plan in advance, but found him criminally responsible for continuing to block lawmakers’ entry despite protests from National Assembly officials.

Kim Yong-gun was acquitted on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence to prove he conspired with Noh in preparations to investigate election fraud suspicions. The things he allegedly did — the provision of a list of recommended military police personnel, attendance at a meeting at a Lotteria fast food joint and awareness of the martial law declaration — were not sufficient to establish conspiracy, the court said.

Yoon Seung-young was also acquitted, with the court finding insufficient evidence that he had assisted the Defense Counterintelligence Command in arresting political figures. The court ruled that the handoff of the list could reasonably constitute standard procedure in a martial law scenario — not in and of itself a criminal offense — rather than participation in an insurrection, which is.

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]]