Prosecution Office Seeks Five-Year Prison Term for Jeon Kwang-hoon over 'Inciting Seoul Western District Court Riot'

by Oh Jieun

Published 21 Oct.2026 15:56(KST)

On charges including inciting special obstruction of official duties and general obstruction of traffic

Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church, who was indicted on charges of inciting the riot at the Seoul Western District Court after his supporters stormed the courthouse in January last year, shortly after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was detained, was sentenced to prison by the Prosecution Office.

Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church, who was detained and indicted on suspicion of orchestrating the unrest at the Seoul Western District Court before being released on bail, speaks to reporters as he arrives for a hearing at the court in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on April 17. Yonhap News Agency

On October 21, the Seoul Western District Prosecution Office asked the court to sentence Jeon to five years in prison during the final hearing in his case, held before Judge Park Jiwon of the Seoul Western District Court’s Criminal Division 1.

At the hearing, prosecutors explained the reasons for seeking the sentence, saying, “On his YouTube channel, [Jeon] made remarks such as, ‘We should rush in en masse where the police are and trample our way up.’” They added, “Taken together, the evidence submitted establishes the charges, but the defendant has consistently denied any involvement in the riot and shown not the slightest remorse.”

Jeon was arrested and indicted on charges of inciting his supporters to storm the Seoul Western District Court in the early hours of January 19, 2025, shortly after former President Yoon was detained, and to destroy property and assault police officers. Prosecutors believe Jeon incited the riot by telling members of Sarang Jeil Church and participants in rallies in Gwanghwamun, among others, that “anti-state forces must be punished through the people’s right to resist.”