Special counsel seeks 5-year prison term for Yoon over appointment of former ambassador to Australia

A special counsel team on Friday requested a five-year prison term for former President Yoon Suk Yeol on charges of helping a former defense minister evade a criminal investigation by appointing him as ambassador to Australia in 2023. Special counsel Lee Myeong-hyeon's team requested the sentence during the final hearing of Yoon's trial at the Seoul Central District Court on charges of aiding a criminal's flight and abuse of power. The former president is accused of appointing former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup as ambassador to Australia in November 2023 to help him evade an investigation into the alleged cover-up of a Marine's death earlier that year.

A central allegation in the cover-up case is that Yoon exerted pressure to reverse the findings of a Marine inquiry into the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun to clear a Marine commander of responsibility. Chae died in July 2023 during an operation to rescue heavy rain victims in Yecheon, some 160 kilometers southeast of Seoul.

Lee, who was the defense minister at the time, was found to have spoken by phone with Yoon in the process, and the spe