AA / Istanbul / Riyaz ul Khaliq
South Korean police said Wednesday they were “tracking” the whereabouts of deposed President Yoon Suk Yeol, after a Seoul court issued a new arrest warrant for him.
The police statement comes amid growing rumors that the 63-year-old leader left his official residence to escape arrest.
“We cannot specifically disclose Chairman Yoon’s location,” a police official told Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency. “We continue to track his whereabouts.”
Indeed, Yoon is accused of sedition and treason due to his brief declaration of martial law on December 3, which led to his removal from office on December 14. The Constitutional Court is currently deliberating on his dismissal.
However, attempts to arrest Yoon were hampered by his security guard, who blocked investigators. A court extended the arrest warrant Tuesday after these failed arrest attempts.
Opposition lawmaker Ahn Gyu-back said Yoon “has already left his residence and is hiding in another place.” However, the presidency rejected this speculation.
“I heard that the president is currently staying at the official residence,” a presidential official said without providing further details.
Also, Yoon’s lawyer indicated that the deposed president would submit to trial if formal charges were brought against him.
Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has worked from the Defense Ministry complex in Seoul and has remained inside his official residence in the Yongsan district since his dismissal.
Yoon is the first sitting South Korean president to face an arrest warrant and travel ban.
Several senior officials in his administration, including former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, Army Chief of Staff General Park An-su, and Brigadier General Kwak Jong-keun, head of the Army’s Special Operations Command, were indicted for sedition and abuse of power in the martial law investigation.
Pro- and anti-Yoon protesters gathered outside his residence, with opposition protesters demanding his arrest, while his supporters waved American flags and chanted “stop the steal” in opposition. to his detention.
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