SEOUL: Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was acquitted Thursday (May 28) of perjury charges stemming from his testimony at the insurrection trial of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
The Seoul Central District Court found Yoon not guilty of giving false testimony during Han’s trial, rejecting the special counsel’s claim that the former president had lied under oath about the circumstances surrounding the Cabinet meeting held before his short-lived martial law declaration.
“It appears highly likely that Yoon had planned to convene Cabinet members from the beginning, regardless of Han’s suggestion,” the court said. “It is difficult to determine that his testimony in court was contrary to his recollection.”
Yoon had been accused of falsely testifying during Han’s trial in November 2025 that he had planned to hold a Cabinet meeting before Han suggested doing so on the day martial law was declared.
During Han’s trial, when the special counsel asked whether Han had suggested convening a Cabinet meeting “to make the declaration appear lawful,” Yoon pushed back, saying, “Cabinet members were not dolls brought in to create an appearance. Isn’t that question too leading?”
The special counsel interpreted the remark as false testimony suggesting that Yoon had intended from the outset to hold a Cabinet meeting, and indicted him in December last year.
The special counsel had sought a two-year prison term for Yoon. - The Korea Herald/ANN
