A Seoul court on Friday found 49 people guilty for their participation in a January courthouse riot related to former President Yoon Suk Yeol, with one of them receiving a five-year prison term.
The Seoul Western District Court handed down the sentences to the individuals indicted en masse for their involvement in the riot at the same court building on Jan. 19, prompted by the court's decision to extend Yoon's detention over his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law.
The guilty sentences ranged from a 2 million-won ($1,423) fine to a prison term of up to five years.
A 19-year-old, surnamed Shim, received the heaviest sentence of five years for trespassing at the court building through a broken window, assaulting a police officer and attempting to commit arson.
"A heavy sentence is inevitable as (the defendant) also attempted arson by buying a lighter from a nearby convenience store, posing serious harm to the judiciary and endangering public safety," the court said.
The court also sentenced a 48-year-old surnamed Lee to three years in prison on charges of damaging a judge's office door after entering the courthouse during the riot.
Another defendant surnamed Yoo was sentenced to a four-year term for assaulting a police officer and breaking a glass door.
"(These acts) not only damage the legitimacy of the judiciary as given by the Constitution, but they also discourage independent judgment by justices and greatly set back the rule of law in our society," the court said.
