Seoul, Dec 16 A South Korean court said on Tuesday that it will deliver its verdict next month on whether former President Yoon Suk Yeol obstructed justice by blocking investigators from detaining him over his short-lived imposition of martial law.
The sentencing hearing will be held January 16, the bench overseeing his trial at the Seoul Central District Court said, citing a law that requires the first ruling to be delivered within six months of an indictment by the special counsel team that investigated his case.
Yoon has been indicted on charges of obstruction of justice, violating the rights of nine Cabinet members who were not called to a meeting to review his martial law plan, drafting and destroying a revised proclamation after the decree was lifted, and ordering the deletion of secure phone records.
The indictments were filed by special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team on July 17. The bench said it plans to conclude hearings for the case on December 19 or 26.
Yoon's lawyers argued the verdicts should be delivered after a separate bench concludes its trial on his insurrection and abuse of power charges stemming from his December 2024 declaration of martial law.
That trial is scheduled to wrap up in early January and produce a verdict in February, Yonhap news agency reported.
The judge dismissed the claim, however, saying the case in question is unrelated to whether the martial law declaration amounted to an insurrection.
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol began preparations for his short-lived imposition of martial law in or before October 2023, more than a year before the December 2024 declaration, a special counsel team concluded on Monday.
Special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team shared the conclusion as it announced the results of its 180-day investigation into the martial law bid after indicting 24 people, including the ousted former president and members of his Cabinet.
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