Investigators, who attempted to enter the former president's property, were thwarted by his bodyguards.
South Korea is sinking further into political crisis. Investigators announced on Friday January 3 to suspend their attempt to arrest deposed president Yoon Suk Yeol in his residence in Seoul, prevented from achieving their goals by his bodyguards. For nearly six hours, prosecutors and agents of the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), which centralizes the investigation for “rebellion» opened against Yoon Suk Yeol, remained inside the presidential residence, in the heights of the chic Hannam district. They ended up leaving around 1:30 p.m. (4:30 a.m. GMT), empty-handed.
«Regarding the execution of the arrest warrant today, it was determined to be physically impossible due to the continuing impasse. Concerns for the safety of on-site staff led to the decision to halt the execution», Declared in a press release the Office of Investigation into the Corruption of Senior Personalities (CIO).
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An arrest that would be unprecedented
A Joint Staff officer in Seoul told AFP that the IOC team was “entry into confrontation» with soldiers placed under the orders of the presidential security service. The latter for his part indicated that he had carried out “negotiations» with the IOC. The presidential security service, which continues to protect Yoon as acting head of state, had already prevented several searches by investigators at Suk Yeol Yoon's home in recent days. Hastily arriving at the presidential residence on Friday morning, Suk Yeol Yoon's team of lawyers once again denounced an arrest warrant “illegal and invalid».
The IOC has until January 6 to execute the arrest warrant issued by a Seoul court at its request on Tuesday. An arrest of Yoon Suk Yeol, who officially remains the head of state and is only suspended pending confirmation by the Constitutional Court of his dismissal by mid-June, would be unprecedented in the history of the South Korea.
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Evangelists and YouTubers
Hundreds of die-hard Suk Yeol Yoon supporters, including well-known far-right YouTubers and evangelical Christian preachers, camped near the presidential residence overnight from Thursday to Friday, with some holding all-night prayer sessions. “Yoon Suk Yeol! Yoon Suk-yeol!» they chanted while waving red light sticks, monitored by the police in large numbers. “We are gathered here today, ready to risk our lives“, said Lee Hye-sook, 57, accusing the opposition of “trying to transform our country into a socialist state similar to North Korea“. Some 2,700 police officers, according to the South Korean agency Yonhap, were deployed in the area, after clashes between supporters and detractors of the deposed president on Thursday evening.
Yoon Suk Yeol stunned South Korea on the night of December 3 to 4 by imposing martial law and sending the army to Parliament to try to muzzle him, an episode that reminded the country of the dark hours of the military dictatorship . He was forced to backtrack a few hours later, when MPs managed to enter Parliament and pass a motion demanding the lifting of martial law while their aides blocked the chamber doors with furniture and thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators gathered outside.
