South Korean law enforcement officials have requested a court warrant to detain impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol as they investigate whether his earlier this month amounted to rebellion.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, which is leading a joint investigation with police and military authorities into the brief power grab, confirmed it requested the warrant from the Seoul Western District Court.
They plan to question Yoon on charges of abuse of authority and orchestrating a rebellion.
Yoon has dodged several requests by the joint investigation team and public prosecutors to appear for questioning and has also blocked searches of his offices.
It’s not clear whether the court will grant the warrant or whether Yoon can be compelled to appear for questioning.
Under the country’s laws, locations potentially linked to military secrets cannot be seized or searched without the consent of the person in charge, and it’s unlikely that Yoon will voluntarily leave his residence if he faces detainment.
Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law triggered protests in South Korea. Source: AAP, AP / Ahn Young-joon
The application by investigators marks the first attempt in South Korea’s history to forcibly detain a president before the impeachment procedure is complete.
Why was Yoon Suk Yeol impeached?
Yoon’s presidential powers were suspended after the on 14 December over his imposition of martial law on 3 December, which lasted only hours but has triggered weeks of political turmoil, halted high-level diplomacy and rattled financial markets. It marked South Korea’s first declaration of martial law in 40 years.
Yoon’s fate now lies with the Constitutional Court, which has begun deliberations on whether to uphold the impeachment and formally remove Yoon from office or reinstate him.
Yoon has defended the martial law decree as a necessary act of governance, describing it as a warning against the liberal opposition Democratic Party, which has been obstructing his agenda with its majority in the parliament.
Political turmoil continues in South Korea
Parliament , who had assumed the role of acting president after Yoon’s powers were suspended, over his reluctance to fill three Constitutional Court vacancies ahead of the court’s review of Yoon’s case.
The country’s new interim leader is deputy prime minister Choi Sang-mok, who is also the finance minister.
Yoon is being investigated by prosecutors as well as the joint team of police, defence and anti-corruption officials.
He faces criminal charges of insurrection, which could result in life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
A 10-page prosecutors’ report stated Yoon authorised the military to fire their weapons if needed to enter parliament during his failed martial law bid.
Yoon’s lawyer Yoon Kab-keun dismissed the prosecutors’ report, telling Agence France-Presse it was “a one-sided account that neither corresponds to objective circumstances nor common sense”.
