4 courthouse rioters get suspended terms for attacking reporters

Four people involved in last year's courthouse riot linked to former President Yoon Suk Yeol were given suspended prison terms Monday for assaulting media reporters. The Seoul Western District Court sentenced the four, including one identified only by his surname Ham, to one year in prison each, suspended for two years, on charges of special assault. They were indicted for trespassing onto the same court and collectively assaulting broadcast journalists on Jan. 19 last year during a protest against its decision to extend Yoon's detention over his Dec. 3, 2024, declaration of martial law. The court said the rioters obstructed the victims' movement and hurled insults, even though they gave up on reporting and moved to leave the scene, creating a hostile atmosphere and a sense of pressure. The court did not accept the argument of some defendants that their actions were not intentional.