Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was charged with sedition after he tried to declare a state of emergency in December.
His ill-fated attempt to impose military rule plunged the country into an unprecedented political crisis, and he becomes the first sitting president in South Korean history to be charged with a crime.
The indictment came after a Seoul court on Saturday rejected a request to extend Yoon’s detention, meaning prosecutors had to make a decision on whether to charge or release him before Monday.
“Now the punishment of the ringleader of the rebellion is finally starting,” Han Min-soo, a spokesman for the main opposition Democratic Party, told a news conference.
Separately, the Constitutional Court has begun a debate on whether to formally dismiss Yoon as president or reinstate him.
The impeached president mostly refused to cooperate with criminal investigation due to the declaration of a state of emergency.
Yoon will stand trial alongside his former defense minister and senior military commanders, who are accused of helping him plan and execute his attempt to seize total power.
In an unprecedented televised announcement on Dec. 3, Yoon said he was invoking martial law to protect the country from “anti-state” forces sympathetic to North Korea.
At the time, the embattled leader was deadlocked over a draft budget, dogged by corruption scandals, and several ministers from his government were under investigation.
The army announced that all parliamentary activities were suspended and tried to impose control over media houses.
The leader of the opposition Democratic Party, Lee Jae-myung, called for people to protest in the National Assembly and asked his fellow lawmakers to immediately vote to lift the order.
Less than two hours after Yoon’s statement, the 190 lawmakers in attendance – including some from the president’s party – voted unanimously to block it.
Soldiers equipped with rifles were seen entering the parliament building through broken windows after a dramatic standoff ensued.
Thousands of civilians gathered in front of the assembly and tried to block the soldiers.
The parliament impeached Yoon and suspended him from office on December 14.
The affair sparked South Korea’s worst political crisis in decades and polarized the country.
Many of his die-hard supporters rallied around him. On Friday, tens of thousands of people gathered at a protest demanding his release and return to office.
If Yoon is removed from office, a presidential election will be held within 60 days.
The prosecutor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
