Special Prosecutor Appeals 25-Year Prison Sentence for Former Justice Minister Park Seongjae

"Charges of Participation in Important Insurrection-Related Duties and Abuse of Power Should Be Recognized as Distinct Substantive Offenses"

The special prosecutor team led by Eunseok Cho has filed an appeal against the first trial verdict that sentenced former Minister of Justice Seongjae Park to 25 years in prison for insurrection-related charges.

Former Minister of Justice Seongjae Park, who was indicted for participating in the emergency martial law of December 3 and for favoring the investigation request of First Lady Gunhee Kim, attended the first trial sentencing hearing held at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 22nd. Photo by Yonhap News

According to the legal community on June 29, the special prosecutor's team submitted an appeal to the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Agreement Division 33 (presiding judge: Jin-gwan Lee), which had tried the case the previous day. They argued that the first trial verdict misunderstood legal principles. The special prosecutor contended that the charges against former Minister Park—participation in important insurrection-related duties and abuse of power—should be recognized as distinct substantive offenses, not as concurrent offenses in the legal sense as the first trial had ruled.

Additionally, the special prosecutor requested that the appellate court review the acquittal verdicts for former Minister Park's violation of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, as well as for former Legislation Minister Wankyu Lee's perjury charge.

Previously, former Minister Park's legal team filed an appeal against the first trial verdict on June 26, while former Minister Lee's side appealed on June 23. Former Minister Park is accused of convening a meeting of senior Ministry of Justice officials immediately after the declaration of emergency martial law on December 3, 2024, directing the consideration of dispatching prosecutors to the joint investigation headquarters of the Martial Law Command, checking the detention capacity of correctional facilities, and instructing staff responsible for travel bans to report to work. These actions are alleged to have constituted participation in former President Seokyeol Yoon's insurrection crimes.

He is also accused of ordering the prosecution department of the Ministry of Justice to draft a document justifying martial law immediately after it was lifted—referred to as a "document of abuse of authority." Additionally, in May 2025, he allegedly received a request from First Lady Geonhee Kim to look into the circumstances under which a special investigation team was formed at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office regarding the luxury bag bribery case, and then issued inappropriate instructions to subordinates.

On June 22, the court found former Minister Park guilty of the main charge—participation in important insurrection-related duties—and sentenced him to 25 years in prison, ordering his immediate detention. However, the court dismissed the charge of violating the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, stating that it did not fall within the scope of the special prosecutor's investigation. The court also dismissed the indictment against former Legislation Minister Lee, who had been charged with perjury before the National Assembly.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.