A South Korean court gave jailed ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol a suspended sentence for spreading disinformation in his 2022 election campaign.
SEOUL: A South Korean court handed jailed ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol an 18-month suspended sentence on Monday for spreading disinformation in his 2022 election campaign before his martial law bid.
The Seoul Central District Court ruling could see South Korea’s main opposition People Power Party (PPP), which Yoon represented, forced to pay 39.7 billion won (US$29 million) to the election commission if it is upheld on appeal. It could also see Yoon’s 2022 electoral win nullified, a largely symbolic blow for the disgraced ex-leader who is already serving a life sentence for insurrection.
Yoon declared martial law in December 2024, ordering troops to shut parliament, before MPs rallied to vote it down after just six hours and oust him. The 65-year-old and his close cohorts have since been prosecuted in a hail of criminal cases.
Monday’s sentence, suspended for three years, was handed down by judges who found Yoon guilty of twin violations of polling legislation by making false statements on the 2022 election trail. Yoon won the vote with a margin of just 0.7%. However, the court found he had been dishonest about his ties to a shaman and lied during an interview at a Buddhist conference to cover up a 2019 meeting with the mystic in a bid to skirt controversy.
Yoon wore a neutral expression as judges also ruled he had lied about introducing a lawyer to a tax official who was investigated for alleged bribery.
“The defendant, a leading candidate in the presidential election — a procedure for selecting the nation’s highest public official — publicised false information regarding his specific actions to his advantage,” said the ruling, read aloud on a livestream. “There are sufficient grounds to determine that the voters’ ability to make informed decisions — a value the offence of disseminating false information seeks to protect — was compromised by these incidents.”
Yoon’s legal team said in a statement to AFP there were “significant errors” in the judgment and said they would lodge an appeal.
Under South Korean law, the election commission reimburses parties for all their campaigning costs if they win more than 15% of the vote. Candidates sentenced to prison for election offences, including airing false information, are mandated to be removed from office with their campaign funds returned to the National Election Commission.
The PPP spent 39.7 billion won contesting 2022’s presidential election, a spokeswoman told AFP, and expects to be forced to pay back the cash if the ruling is upheld. That amount would total roughly one-third of the beleaguered party’s assets, according to election commission filings.
