South Korea’s president does not have immunity from charges of treason, which are punishable by life imprisonment or death.
South Korean prosecutors indicted impeached President Yoon Seok-yul on December 3 for leading a coup with the imposition of martial law. has been imposed.
“Prosecutors have decided to indict Yoon Seok-yul, who is facing charges of masterminding the coup,” Democratic Party spokesman Han Min-soo told a news conference on Sunday.
“The Punishment of the Leader of the Rebellion Now Finally Begins.”
Treason is one of the few criminal charges for which the South Korean president is not immune. It is punishable by life imprisonment or death, although South Korea has not executed anyone in decades.
Anti-corruption investigators last week recommended indicting the jailed Yoon, who was impeached by parliament and suspended over the incident.
Yoon’s lawyers had urged prosecutors to immediately release him from illegal detention.
Under criminal investigation, he has been in custody since becoming the first sitting president to be arrested on January 15.
Yun and his lawyers argued at his impeachment trial in the Constitutional Court last week that he never intended to impose martial law outright but only as a warning to break the political stalemate. was on
In parallel with his criminal proceedings, the high court will determine whether to remove Yun from office or restore his presidential powers, which has 180 days to decide.
South Korea’s opposition-led parliament impeached Yoon on December 14, making him the second conservative president to be impeached in the country.
Yun withdrew his martial law about six hours later after lawmakers from the main opposition party, confronting the troops in parliament, rejected the decree.
During the dramatic encounter, soldiers armed with rifles, body armor and night vision equipment were seen entering the parliament building through broken windows.
