Suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested on Wednesday (local time), nearly a month and a half after plunging the country into political chaos by briefly declaring martial law, authorities said after an assault on his residence.
• Also read: South Korea: presidential security chief resigns
• Also read: South Korea: Yoon’s supporters camp outside his home to block his arrest
• Also read: South Korea: new mandate to arrest ousted President Yoon
After an initial raid which turned into a fiasco at the beginning of January, agents from the Office for the Investigation of Corruption of High Personalities (CIO) and the police showed up in large numbers, before dawn, at the home transformed into a fortress where the he former prosecutor has been holed up for weeks in an upscale neighborhood of Seoul.
After several hours, the team in charge of the operation indicated in a press release that they had “executed an arrest warrant against President Yoon Suk Yeol” at 10:33 a.m. local time (8:33 p.m. Montreal time).
Suspended by deputies and targeted by an investigation for “rebellion”, the conservative leader had until now always refused to explain himself since his coup, pushing prosecutors to resort to arrest warrants with a view to placing him in custody.
“I have decided to respond to the Corruption Investigation Bureau,” Yoon announced in a video message, adding that he did not recognize the legality of the investigation but was submitting to it “for avoid any unfortunate bloodshed” while the police raided his residence in the morning.
Never before has a sitting head of state been arrested in South Korea. Yoon Suk Yeol may be held in custody for 48 hours under the current warrant. Investigators will have to request a new one to possibly extend his detention.
Mr. Yoon risks his post and is under investigation for “rebellion” for having briefly introduced martial law on December 3, a shock measure reminiscent of the dark hours of the military dictatorship, which he had justified by his will to protect the country from “North Korean communist forces” and to “eliminate elements hostile to the state.”
In a Parliament surrounded by soldiers, the deputies had foiled his plans by voting on a text demanding the lifting of this state of exception. Put under pressure by elected officials, thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators and constrained by the Constitution, Mr. Yoon had to comply.
AFP
Destitution
On January 3, the Presidential Security Service (PSS), responsible for protecting heads of state, blocked a first attempt by the IOC to execute the arrest warrant issued to force the leader to answer its questions.
For their second raid, the authorities warned that they would apprehend anyone who obstructed them.
Teams from the IOC and the police had to climb over the surrounding wall using ladders before getting past vehicle blockades.
As they advanced toward the front door of the presidential home, police arrested the PSS interim leader, Yonhap reported.
Thousands of unconditional supporters are massed in front of the residence.
Very unpopular, Yoon Suk Yeol was suspended on December 14 following the adoption by the National Assembly of an impeachment motion.
On Tuesday, the Constitutional Court formally launched the impeachment trial of the conservative leader, with a very short first hearing. Mr. Yoon did not show up, citing “concerns” about security.
The trial will continue even without him, with a second hearing scheduled for Thursday.
The court has until mid-June to decide the future of Yoon Suk Yeol, still officially the president pending the verdict. The court may either permanently dismiss him or reinstate him in his functions.
