Special Prosecutor Requests Sentence for Yoon Suk Yeol Appeal
- In the appeal trial over former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's Public Official Election Act violation charges, the special prosecutor's office requested a prison sentence of one...
- During the closing arguments at the Seoul High Court, Special Prosecutor Min Jung-ki emphasized the razor-thin margin of the 20th presidential election, where Yoon won by just 247,000...
- The trial also focused on conflicting accounts regarding Jeon Seong-bae, a figure known as 'Geonjin Beobsa'.
In the appeal trial over former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Public Official Election Act violation charges, the special prosecutor’s office requested a prison sentence of one year and six months with a three-year suspension, matching the penalty demanded in the first trial, imnews.imbc.com reported on October 13, 2026. The final hearing concluded on October 13, 2026, with the appellate court scheduling its ruling for October 27, 2026.
Special Prosecutor Cites Margin of Victory and Disputed Statements
During the closing arguments at the Seoul High Court, Special Prosecutor Min Jung-ki emphasized the razor-thin margin of the 20th presidential election, where Yoon won by just 247,000 votes, or 0.73 percentage points—the narrowest margin in constitutional history, imnews.imbc.com reported. The prosecution argued that false statements made during the campaign influenced the outcome by neutralizing doubts in such a tight race.
The trial also focused on conflicting accounts regarding Jeon Seong-bae, a figure known as ‘Geonjin Beobsa’. According to imnews.imbc.com, prosecutors pointed out that Yoon changed his explanation about how he met Jeon. Initially, Yoon claimed he was introduced to Jeon as a monk by a campaign official in January 2022 and that his wife, Kim Keon-hee, was not present. However, after Jeon testified in the first-tier court that no such introduction occurred, Yoon altered his defense to state that Jeon was introduced as a monk cheering for the People Power Party and that the couple never met Jeon separately at the campaign office.
Another central dispute involved whether Yoon introduced a lawyer to Yoon Woo-jin, the former head of the Yongsan Tax Office and elder brother of former Prosecutor General Yoon Dae-jin. While Yoon has maintained that a 2012 media interview in which he stated he introduced a lawyer was merely an effort to shield Yoon Dae-jin, the prosecution countered that text messages and call logs from the lawyer clearly confirm the introduction took place, imnews.imbc.com reported. Prosecutors characterized Yoon’s explanation as an exculpatory excuse crafted after controversy erupted during a parliamentary confirmation hearing.
October 27 Ruling Dictates Election Cost Repayment and Voided Victory
In his final statement, Yoon maintained his innocence, asserting to the court that all statements targeted by the prosecution were not false, according to imnews.imbc.com. If the appellate court upholds a sentence that invalidates the election, Yoon’s presidential win will be nullified, and the People Power Party will be legally required to return 39.7 billion won in election expenses reimbursed by the state. The appellate court will deliver its verdict on October 27, 2026.
