Yoon Suk Yeol ‘obstruction of arrest,’ Han Duck-soo ‘insurrection involvement’... series of appellate trials begin this week

[The Financial News] Appellate proceedings will begin this week in the case of former President Yoon Suk Yeol over obstruction of arrest, and in the case of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo over participation in key duties related to insurrection.
According to the legal community on the 1st, Criminal Division 1 of the Seoul High Court, the panel specializing in insurrection cases and headed by Presiding Judge Yoon Sung-sik of the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 1, with Judge Min Seong-cheol and Judge Lee Dong-hyun, will hold the first appellate hearing at 2 p.m. on the 4th in Yoon’s case. He is charged with obstruction of the execution of official duties by special public officials and abuse of power causing interference with the exercise of rights, among other offenses.
In the first trial, the court found most of the charges against former President Yoon to be proven and sentenced him to five years in prison.
The court held Yoon guilty of attempting to block efforts by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) to arrest him on January 3 and 15 of last year.
It also convicted him for convening only some cabinet members of the State Council of the Republic of Korea at the time of the December 3 Martial Law declaration in order to give the appearance of a proper cabinet meeting, which the court treated as abuse of power. In addition, it found him guilty of drafting and then destroying a false proclamation after martial law was lifted, in violation of laws including the Presidential Records Act through the creation of false official documents.
However, the court acquitted him on some counts, including instructing that a Press Guidance (PG) containing the false statement that there was "not the slightest intention to destroy the constitutional order" be distributed to foreign media.
On the 5th, the first appellate hearing will also be held for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who was sentenced at trial to 23 years in prison for his role in the December 3 Martial Law.
On that morning at 10 a.m., Seoul High Court Criminal Division 12-1, another panel specializing in insurrection cases composed of Judge Lee Seung-cheol of the Seoul High Court’s Criminal Division 12-1, Cho Jin-gu, and Judge Kim Min-a of the Seoul High Court, will hold a pretrial hearing in Han’s case on charges including participation in key duties related to insurrection and drafting false official documents.
A pretrial hearing is a procedure held before full deliberations to confirm each side’s position and discuss their plans for presenting evidence. Unlike a full trial, the defendant is not required to attend.
In the first trial, the court ruled that Han, as prime minister, had a duty to check the president’s arbitrary abuse of authority but failed to stop the unlawful declaration of martial law. It found him guilty on that basis and imposed a heavy sentence, ordering that he be taken into custody in court due to concerns about possible destruction of evidence.
The court also convicted him for signing the martial law proclamation after the fact and then destroying it, and for giving false testimony in February 2024 before the Constitutional Court of Korea during the impeachment trial of the president, where he stated in substance that he had not been aware of the proclamation.
However, it acquitted him of charges that he checked, through then–Office for Government Policy Coordination chief Bang Ki-seon and others, whether the National Assembly had been notified of the martial law declaration in order to meet procedural requirements, and of allegations that he delayed State Council deliberations on lifting martial law.
At 4 p.m. the same day, the appeal of People Power Party lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong, who was indicted for receiving 100 million won in illegal political funds from the Unification Church, will also begin. In the first trial, he was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to forfeit 100 million won for allegedly receiving that sum in January 2022 from former Unification Church World Mission Headquarters head Yoon Young-ho, along with a request that the Yoon Suk Yeol administration provide support to the church.


scottchoi15@fnnews.com Choi Eun-sol Reporter