Life for insurrection and 30 years over drone flights to Pyongyang, both first-instance rulings under appeal; one final 7-year term; two acquittals, both appealed.
Status as of September 26, 2026. "Final" means no further appeal is possible. Every other ruling can still change, and Yoon is presumed innocent of those charges until it becomes final.
| Case | Court | Date | Outcome | Final? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Impeachment (removal from office) | Constitutional Court | Apr 4, 2025 | Removed from office, 8–0 | Yes (no appeal exists) |
| Obstructing his arrest, bypassing the Cabinet, falsified documents | Supreme Court | Jul 9, 2026 | 7-year prison term upheld | Yes, final |
| Leading an insurrection (martial law) | Seoul Central District Court | Feb 19, 2026 | Life imprisonment | No. Appeal under way at Seoul High Court |
| "Benefiting the enemy" (Pyongyang drone flights) | Seoul Central District Court | Jun 12, 2026 | 30 years in prison | No. Yoon appealed Jun 12; special counsel appealed Jun 18 |
| Political Funds Act (free polls from broker Myung Tae-kyun) | Seoul Central District Court | Jul 13, 2026 | 2 years in prison | No. Yoon appealed; Seoul High Court ruling set for Oct 7, 2026 |
| Election law (false statements in 2022 campaign) | Seoul Central District Court | Jul 27, 2026 | 18 months, suspended for 3 years | No. Appealed |
| Perjury (testimony at Han Duck-soo's trial) | Seoul High Court | Sep 16, 2026 | Acquittal upheld (first acquitted May 28, 2026) | No. Special counsel appealed to Supreme Court Sep 22 |
| Aiding ex-defense minister Lee Jong-sup's flight (ambassador posting) | Seoul Central District Court | Sep 11, 2026 | Acquitted | No. Special counsel appealed |
| Interference in the 2023 Marine death probe | Seoul Central District Court | Trial opened Apr 29, 2026 | No verdict yet | Pending |
| Abuse of authority (messages to allies justifying martial law) | Seoul Central District Court | Indicted Aug 12, 2026; first preparatory hearing Sep 16, 2026 | No verdict yet | Pending |
| Anti-graft law (wife's Dior bag) | Not yet reported | Indicted Sep 17, 2026 | No trial yet | Pending |
↔ Swipe sideways to see the full table.
The Constitutional Court ruling removed Yoon from office but is not a criminal conviction. It led to the early presidential election of June 2025, which Lee Jae-myung won.
In January 2025, officers from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) tried to arrest Yoon at the presidential residence. The Presidential Security Service blocked them with barricades and other security measures. That episode is the core of the first martial law case to reach a final verdict.
On January 16, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court (presiding judge Baek Dae-hyun) sentenced Yoon to five years in prison. It convicted him of obstructing the arrest; of violating the deliberation rights of the seven Cabinet members who were not notified of the meeting held before martial law was declared; of drafting a backdated martial law proclamation and later destroying it (falsifying an official document and violating the Presidential Records Act); and of ordering the deletion of secure-phone records. It acquitted him of using the backdated proclamation, of ordering false press guidance to foreign media, and of the Cabinet charge as it concerned two ministers who were notified but did not attend. The special counsel had sought a combined 10 years.
On April 29, 2026, the Seoul High Court raised the sentence to seven years. It reversed two of the acquittals. It extended the Cabinet charge to the two ministers who were notified but did not attend (Park Sang-woo and Ahn Duk-geun), making nine in all, and it convicted him over ordering false press guidance to be sent to foreign media. It upheld the other convictions, including those for creating and destroying the backdated proclamation, violating the Presidential Records Act and ordering the deletion of secure-phone records. It also upheld the acquittal on using the proclamation.
On July 9, 2026, the Supreme Court dismissed appeals from both Yoon and the special counsel, and the seven-year term became final. The ruling came 583 days after martial law was declared and was the first final judgment among his criminal cases. The court found no legal error in the lower court's findings on the investigative procedures and the execution of the warrant. Yoon's lawyers said they planned to file a constitutional complaint.
On February 19, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court (presiding judge Ji Gwi-yeon) convicted Yoon of leading an insurrection and sentenced him to life imprisonment. The special counsel had asked for the death penalty. The court found that Yoon acted to subvert the Constitution by sending troops to the National Assembly to paralyze or limit its work. It held that the deployment amounted to the "violence" that the legal definition of insurrection requires. It found insufficient evidence that he declared martial law with the aim of extending his term.
In the same ruling, former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun received 30 years. The court also sentenced other military and police officials (see the co-defendants section below).
Yoon appealed on February 24 and the special counsel appealed on February 25. The Seoul High Court held its first preliminary hearing on April 27. On May 14 it halted the trial after Yoon's lawyers asked for all three judges to be removed. They objected that the same panel had earlier sentenced former prime minister Han Duck-soo and had ruled that the martial law declaration was an insurrection. A separate Seoul High Court panel rejected the recusal motions on May 20, and the Supreme Court dismissed Yoon's further appeal on June 12.
Hearings resumed on June 25, after a pause of about six weeks. In its appeal arguments, the special counsel again asked for the death penalty for Yoon and for life imprisonment for Kim Yong-hyun. It also disputed the lower court's refusal to accept the notebook of former intelligence commander Noh Sang-won as evidence of preparations for martial law. No appellate verdict had been issued as of September 26, 2026. The life sentence is not final.
On June 12, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 36 (presiding judge Lee Jeong-yeop) convicted Yoon over drone flights sent toward Pyongyang from October 2024. The charges were general benefiting of the enemy and abuse of authority obstructing others' rights. Korean outlets translate the first charge (일반이적, Article 99 of the Criminal Act) in several ways: "general treason", "aiding the enemy" and "benefiting the enemy" all refer to the same offense.
| Defendant | Role | Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Yoon Suk Yeol | Former president | 30 years |
| Kim Yong-hyun | Former defense minister | 30 years |
| Yeo In-hyung | Former Defense Counterintelligence commander | 15 years |
| Kim Yong-dae | Former Drone Operations commander | 3 years, suspended for 5 years |
The court found that the drone operation was designed to create conditions for declaring martial law, not to defend the country. It found that the operation gave North Korea a pretext for provocation.
Yoon's lawyers appealed on the day of the ruling, and the other defendants also appealed. The special counsel appealed against all four on June 18. For Yoon and Kim Yong-hyun it cited errors in fact-finding and in how the law was applied. For Yeo In-hyung it added that the sentence was too lenient, and for Kim Yong-dae it appealed the sentence alone. No appellate ruling had been reported as of September 26, 2026. The ruling is not final.
Free polls (Political Funds Act). The special counsel charged Yoon with receiving 58 free opinion polls from political broker Myung Tae-kyun between June 2021 and March 2022, worth more than 270 million won. On July 13, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court convicted him on 14 of those polls and sentenced him to two years in prison (not suspended). Korea Herald reported the 14 polls were valued at 27.92 million won; Korea Times reported a forfeiture of 13.96 million won. The court found that Yoon had promised to help former lawmaker Kim Young-sun win a party nomination in return. Myung was sentenced to 18 months. Yoon appealed. At the Seoul High Court's closing hearing on September 11, the special counsel asked for four years and a forfeiture of 137.2 million won. The court scheduled its ruling for October 7, 2026. As of September 26, the two-year sentence is not final.
False statements (Public Official Election Act). On July 27, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoon to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years. The court convicted him over two statements from the 2022 campaign. One concerned whether he had introduced a lawyer to former Yongsan tax office chief Yoon Woo-jin. The other concerned whether he had met shaman Jeon Seong-bae. According to the Korea Herald, if the verdict becomes final, the People Power Party would have to return 39.7 billion won in reimbursed campaign expenses to the National Election Commission. As of September 26, 2026, the case is on appeal and not final.
Perjury. Yoon was charged with lying as a witness at Han Duck-soo's insurrection trial. He had testified that he always intended to hold a Cabinet meeting before declaring martial law. The special counsel argued that he first called only six ministers and summoned others after Han suggested meeting the quorum. It sought two years in prison at the first trial, and the Seoul Central District Court acquitted him on May 28, 2026. On appeal, the special counsel lowered its request to a 10 million won fine. On September 16, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 1 (presiding judge Yoon Sung-sik) upheld the acquittal, finding the testimony could not be shown to be false. The special counsel appealed to the Supreme Court on September 22.
Lee Jong-sup ambassador case. The special counsel alleged that Yoon had former defense minister Lee Jong-sup appointed ambassador to Australia in 2024 so that Lee could leave the country while under investigation over a Marine's death in July 2023. On September 11, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court acquitted all six defendants: Yoon, former national security adviser Cho Tae-yong, former justice minister Park Sung-jae, former vice justice minister Shim Woo-jung, former first vice foreign minister Chang Ho-jin and former presidential secretary Lee Si-won. The court found insufficient evidence of intent to help Lee avoid investigation. It noted the appointment process began in November 2023 and said the appointment could be an ordinary exercise of presidential personnel authority. The special counsel appealed, and the acquittal is not final.
Marine death probe. In a separate trial, Yoon and other former officials, including Cho Tae-yong and Lee Jong-sup, are charged with abuse of power. Prosecutors allege they interfered with the military investigation into the 2023 death of Marine Cpl. Chae Su-geun during a flood rescue. At the first hearing on April 29, 2026, Yoon's lawyers denied all the charges. No verdict had been reported as of September 26, 2026.
Martial-law messages to allies. On August 12, 2026, the second comprehensive special counsel (Kwon Chang-young) indicted Yoon on a charge of abuse of authority. It alleges that on December 3–4, 2024 he had officials at the National Security Office and the Foreign Ministry send messages justifying martial law to the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and the European Union. Former national security adviser Shin Won-sik was indicted in the same case. At the first preparatory hearing, held at the Seoul Central District Court on September 16, 2026, Yoon's lawyers said they had not finished reviewing the case records and would state his position later. No verdict had been reported as of September 26, 2026.
Dior bag. On September 17, 2026, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office indicted Yoon, who is already in prison, under the anti-graft law. The charge is that he failed to report a Dior bag, worth 3 million won, that his wife received from a pastor in 2022. Prosecutors had declined to charge him over the bag in October 2024, while he was president. Police referred the case to prosecutors in June 2026. No trial date had been reported as of September 26, 2026.
Other senior officials have been tried for their roles on December 3, 2024. As of September 26, 2026, none of these verdicts is final.
| Defendant | Role at the time | Ruling(s) | Final? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Han Duck-soo | Prime minister | 23 years (Jan 21, 2026), cut to 15 years on appeal (May 7, 2026) with the insurrection conviction upheld | No. Before the Supreme Court's full bench |
| Lee Sang-min | Interior minister | 7 years (Feb 12, 2026), raised to 9 years on appeal (May 12, 2026) | No. Before the Supreme Court's full bench |
| Kim Yong-hyun | Defense minister | 30 years for insurrection (Feb 19); 3 years for deception and evidence destruction (May 19); 30 years in drone case (Jun 12) | No |
| Park Sung-jae | Justice minister | 25 years (Jun 22, 2026); appealed Jun 27 | No |
| Noh Sang-won | Former intelligence commander | 18 years (Feb 19, 2026) | No |
| Cho Ji-ho | National Police Agency chief | 12 years (Feb 19, 2026) | No |
| Kim Bong-sik | Seoul police chief | 10 years (Feb 19, 2026) | No |
| Yeo In-hyung | Defense Counterintelligence commander | 18 years (Sep 21, 2026); separately 15 years in drone case (Jun 12) | No |
| Lee Jin-woo | Capital Defense commander | 15 years (Sep 21, 2026) | No |
| Moon Sang-ho | Defense Intelligence commander | 12 years (Sep 21, 2026) | No |
| Park An-su | Army chief of staff | 10 years (Sep 21, 2026) | No |
| Kwak Jong-geun | Special Warfare commander | 9 years (Sep 21, 2026) | No |
At Han Duck-soo's first trial, the special counsel had sought 15 years and the court imposed 23. On appeal the special counsel sought 23 years and received 15. Lee Sang-min was convicted of relaying Yoon's order to cut power and water to certain media outlets to the fire agency chief, and of perjury at Yoon's impeachment trial. Kim Yong-hyun's 3-year sentence covers obtaining a secure phone for Noh Sang-won by deceiving the Presidential Security Service and ordering an aide to dispose of martial law documents.
The five commanders were sentenced on September 21, 2026 by the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 26 (presiding judge Lee Hyun-kyung). The court said they had used military force for the political interests of a particular faction. Kwak Jong-geun's sentence was reduced because he gave statements that were decisive in uncovering the facts. On August 5, 2026, the Supreme Court sent the Han and Lee appeals to its full bench. The justices are scheduled to begin closed-door full-bench deliberations on those cases, and on Kim Keon Hee's first case, on September 29, 2026. No ruling date had been reported as of September 26.
Former first lady Kim Keon Hee has been convicted in two separate cases, and neither is final. A third indictment followed on August 18, 2026, when the second comprehensive special counsel (Kwon Chang-young) charged her and People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Han-hong over the award of the 4.12 billion won presidential residence relocation project to an unqualified company, 21 Gram. She was also charged with accepting money and valuables worth 10.12 million won from the company. No verdict had been reported in that case as of September 26, 2026.
| Case | First instance | Appeal | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deutsch Motors stock manipulation, Unification Church gifts, free polls | 20 months (Jan 28, 2026). Convicted only on part of the Unification Church gifts charge | 4 years plus a 50 million won fine (Apr 28, 2026). Stock manipulation conviction added; acquittal on free polls upheld | Supreme Court full bench (referred Jul 23); closed-door deliberations begin Sep 29, 2026 |
| Accepting valuables in return for help with appointments, a party nomination and business matters | 7 years; forfeiture of 64.8 million won (Jun 26, 2026) | 5 years; forfeiture of 24.4 million won (Sep 22, 2026). Watch and Sehando replica acquitted | Kim appealed to the Supreme Court on Sep 23, 2026; special counsel said it would also appeal |
| Presidential residence relocation contract (21 Gram) | No verdict yet (indicted Aug 18, 2026) | Not reached | Pending; first preparatory hearing set for Oct 2, 2026 (Seoul Central District Court) |
The Supreme Court had scheduled its ruling in the first case for July 16, 2026. It postponed the ruling to July 24 after the special counsel asked it to consider Yoon's July 13 conviction in the free-polls case, and on July 23 it referred the case to its full bench. The Korea Times reported that the referral was likely prompted by conflicting lower-court rulings: Kim was acquitted on the same free-poll allegations for which her husband was convicted on July 13. The Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that the key legal question is whether an implicit agreement with Myung Tae-kyun over free polling can be established.
In the second case, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 15-3 (presiding judge Seong Eon-ju) upheld convictions for jewelry from a construction company chairman, a painting from a former senior prosecutor, a Dior bag and other items from a pastor, and a gold turtle ornament from former National Education Commission chair Lee Bae-yong. It acquitted her over a luxury watch from a businessman and over a replica of the painting Sehando that Lee also gave her, finding it had not been shown that either was given in return for a favor. The forfeiture fell from 64.8 million won to 24.4 million won. Kim appealed on September 23. The special counsel said it would also appeal; as of September 26, 2026, we could not confirm that it had filed.
A South Korean criminal case can pass through three levels: a first-instance trial at a district court, an appeal to a high court, and a final appeal to the Supreme Court. Both sides can appeal. That includes the prosecution, here the special counsel, which can appeal acquittals. An appeal must normally be filed within seven days of the ruling.
A ruling becomes final when the Supreme Court rejects the last appeal, when an appeal is withdrawn, or when the seven-day deadline passes without an appeal. If the Supreme Court overturns a ruling, it usually sends the case back to a high court for a new appellate trial, an outcome that remains possible in the cases now before its full bench. Until a ruling is final, the defendant is presumed innocent of those charges. This is why Yoon's life sentence and 30-year sentence are reported as first-instance rulings, and why his two acquittals could still be reversed.
The special counsel laws set deadlines for these trials. According to the Korea Herald, first-instance rulings are due within six months, and appeals and Supreme Court reviews within three months each. In practice the timelines have stretched. The Korea Herald reported that the Supreme Court was due to rule on Kim Keon Hee's first case by July 28, 2026; it referred the case to its full bench instead. Yoon's insurrection appeal, filed in February 2026, had no ruling as of September 26. Each trial ends in its own separate sentence.
As of September 26, 2026, former President Yoon Suk Yeol has received separate sentences in separate trials, and only one is final: 7 years in prison for obstructing his arrest and related charges, which the Supreme Court upheld on July 9, 2026. The others are first-instance rulings under appeal: life imprisonment for leading an insurrection (February 19, 2026), 30 years over drone flights to Pyongyang (June 12, 2026), 2 years over free opinion polls (July 13, 2026) and 18 months suspended for three years for false campaign statements (July 27, 2026). He was acquitted of perjury and of helping ex-defense minister Lee Jong-sup leave the country, and the special counsel has appealed both acquittals. Until a ruling is final, he is presumed innocent of those charges.
No. As of September 26, 2026, former President Yoon Suk Yeol's heaviest sentence is life imprisonment for leading an insurrection, a first-instance ruling by the Seoul Central District Court on February 19, 2026. The special counsel had asked for the death penalty, and asked for it again when the appeal resumed at the Seoul High Court on June 25, 2026. The appeals court had not ruled, and the life sentence is not final.
No. As of September 26, 2026, the Seoul High Court had not ruled on the appeals that Yoon (February 24) and the special counsel (February 25) filed against his February 19, 2026 life sentence for leading an insurrection. The appeal was halted for about six weeks, from May 14 to June 25, 2026, over a motion to remove the judges, which the Seoul High Court rejected on May 20 and the Supreme Court on June 12. Until a final ruling, Yoon is presumed innocent of the insurrection charge.
As of September 26, 2026, former President Yoon Suk Yeol has been indicted in 10 criminal cases. Korean media counted nine through August 2026, linked to the martial law declaration, his 2022 campaign and the alleged cover-up of a Marine's death; a tenth, under the anti-graft law over his wife's Dior bag, was filed on September 17, 2026. One has ended in a final conviction (obstruction, 7 years). Four have produced first-instance convictions that are under appeal. Two have produced acquittals that the special counsel has appealed. Three have no verdict yet: the Marine probe trial, an August 12, 2026 abuse-of-authority case over messages sent to allies to justify martial law, and the Dior bag case.
Only at first instance. On June 12, 2026, the Seoul Central District Court convicted former President Yoon Suk Yeol of general benefiting of the enemy (일반이적) over drone flights to Pyongyang and sentenced him to 30 years. English reports also call the charge "general treason" or "aiding the enemy". The court found the drone operation was meant to create conditions for martial law. Yoon appealed the same day and the special counsel appealed on June 18. As of September 26, 2026, no appellate ruling had been issued, and the conviction is not final.
As of September 26, 2026, former first lady Kim Keon Hee has been convicted in two cases, and neither is final. In the first, covering stock manipulation, gifts from the Unification Church and free polls, she received 20 months in January 2026. An appeals court raised that to 4 years and a 50 million won fine in April 2026. The Supreme Court referred the case to its full bench on July 23, and the justices begin closed-door deliberations on September 29, 2026. In the second, over valuables accepted in return for help with appointments, a party nomination and business matters, she received 7 years in June 2026, cut to 5 years on appeal on September 22. She appealed to the Supreme Court on September 23. A third case, over the presidential residence relocation contract, was filed on August 18, 2026 and has no verdict yet.