South Korea: On January 16, the court will render a decision on the obstruction of justice case against former President Yoon

South Korean : court said that it would rule next month on whether former President Yoon Suk Yeol obstructed justice by preventing investigators from holding him in custody for his brief martial law declaration.

Citing a rule that mandates the first decision be rendered within six months following an indictment by the special counsel team that looked into his case, the bench presiding over his trial at the Seoul Central District Court said that the sentence hearing will take place on January 16.

Yoon has been charged with obstruction of justice, creating and discarding a new proclamation after the decree was revoked, ordering the deletion of secure phone data, and breaching the rights of nine Cabinet members who were not invited to a meeting to evaluate his martial rule proposal.

On July 17, the team headed by special attorney Cho Eun-suk submitted the indictments. The bench said that it intends to wrap up the case’s hearings on either December 19 or 26.

Yoon’s attorneys contended that the judgments were to be rendered after the conclusion of a different bench’s trial on accusations of rebellion and abuse of authority related to his proclamation of martial rule in December 2024.

According to the Yonhap news agency, the trial is expected to conclude in early January and result in a judgment in February.

However, the court rejected the allegation, stating that it had nothing to do with whether the proclamation of martial rule constituted an uprising.

A special counsel panel found on Monday that former President Yoon Suk Yeol started planning his brief proclamation of martial rule in or about October 2023, more than a year before the December 2024 announcement.

After indicting 24 individuals, including the deposed former president and members of his Cabinet, special counsel Cho Eun-suk’s team released the findings of its 180-day probe into the martial law attempt.