Court Sentences Former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae to 25 Years in Prison for Dec. 3 Martial Law Involvement

[Anchor]

Park Sung-jae, the former Minister of Justice who was indicted for his involvement in the December 3 emergency martial law declaration, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison in the first trial and taken into court custody. The court imposed a heavier sentence than the special prosecutor's recommendation, stating that "the defendant's actions could have plunged the Republic of Korea into the quagmire of a dictatorship."

Jang Hun-gyeong reports.

[Reporter]

[Lee Jin-kwan, Presiding Judge, Seoul Central District Court Criminal Agreement Division 33 (June 22): The defendant, Park Sung-jae, is sentenced to 25 years in prison.]

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae to 25 years in prison and ordered his immediate detention after finding him guilty of charges including engaging in important duties of insurrection.

Presiding Judge Lee Jin-kwan, who sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in prison last January—eight years more than the special prosecutor's recommendation—again imposed a sentence five years longer than the 20-year term requested by the special prosecutor.

The court stated that after the declaration of emergency martial law, Park participated in the insurrection while fully aware of its illegal nature and intent to undermine the constitutional order, such as by ordering the dispatch of prosecutors to the Joint Investigation Headquarters and instructing the securing of detention space at correctional facilities during a Ministry of Justice executive meeting.

The court also found him guilty of abuse of power, including ordering the standby of an exit ban team, thereby forcing public officials to perform duties they were not obligated to carry out.

[Lee Jin-kwan, Presiding Judge, Seoul Central District Court Criminal Agreement Division 33 (June 22): You chose to participate as a member of the insurrection, thinking it might succeed. (The Republic of Korea) could have been trapped in the quagmire of a dictatorship for a long time.]

During his final hearing, Park shed tears, claiming he could not stop former President Yoon Suk Yeol. However, the court rebuked him, stating that it was difficult to recognize the sincerity of his remorse and that there was no evidence he had made efforts to restore the damage suffered by the public.

The court, however, dismissed the charges regarding allegations that Park gave inappropriate instructions to the investigation team handling First Lady Kim Keon-hee's Dior bag scandal at her request, ruling that it fell outside the scope of the special prosecutor's investigation.

Former Minister of Government Legislation Lee Wan-kyu, who was indicted for perjury before the National Assembly by testifying that there was no discussion regarding martial law during a "safe house meeting" held immediately after the lifting of martial law, also had his case dismissed on the grounds that it was not subject to investigation under the Special Prosecutor Act.

(Video Editing: Kim Jin-won)

※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.