South Korean prosecutors renewed their demand for the death penalty against former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday, arguing that his failed attempt to impose martial law in December 2024 constituted a grave threat to the country's democracy.
The request came during an appeal hearing at the Seoul High Court, where Yoon is challenging a life sentence imposed in February for leading an insurrection.
The prosecution team, led by Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-suk, argued that the severity of Yoon's actions warranted capital punishment rather than life imprisonment.
Prosecutors had initially sought the death penalty during his original trial in January, but the Seoul Central District Court imposed a life sentence the following month.
The lower court concluded that Yoon illegally deployed military personnel and police to obstruct parliament, detain political opponents and consolidate power for an extended period.
Prosecutors maintained that South Korea's longstanding suspension of executions should not prevent judges from imposing a death sentence.
Although capital punishment remains legal, the country has not carried out an execution since 1997.
Yoon's lawyers rejected the prosecution's arguments, maintaining that his declaration was intended to warn against alleged obstruction by the opposition-controlled legislature rather than establish authoritarian rule.
Yoon declared martial law late on December 3, 2024, deploying troops and police around the National Assembly.
Lawmakers subsequently overcame a security blockade and voted to overturn the decree, forcing the government to withdraw it approximately six hours after its announcement.
The political crisis prompted parliament to impeach Yoon on December 14, 2024, suspending him from office.
South Korea's Constitutional Court formally removed him in April 2025, and he was re-arrested in July.
Yoon is also appealing a separate 30-year prison sentence linked to allegations that he ordered drone flights toward North Korea to escalate tensions and justify martial law.
His lawyers maintain that the flights responded to North Korean balloons carrying trash into South Korea.
The Seoul High Court has not scheduled a verdict in the rebellion appeal.
Two additional hearings are planned, including Yoon's final statement on November 5.