South Korea –
President’s detention extended, court stormed
“There is concern that the suspect could destroy evidence,” the judges said to justify the continued detention of the head of state.
Supporters of Yoon Suk Yeol gather outside a Seoul court where the suspended South Korean president appears during a hearing on the request to extend his detention, January 18, 2025.
AFP
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South Korean justice on Sunday extended the detention of President Yoon Suk Yeol, suspended from office after his arrest for trying to impose martial law, causing angry demonstrators to burst into the court.
The latter broke window panes of the building, located in western Seoul, before rushing in, a video broadcast live shows. “There is concern that the suspect could destroy evidence,” the judges said to explain their decision not to release the head of state.
Tens of thousands – 44,000 according to the police – of demonstrators who chanted slogans in support of Mr. Yoon and some of whom brandished signs reading “free the president” had previously gathered in front of the court and protested. were confronted by the police.
44 arrests
Forty demonstrators were arrested following violence, particularly committed against members of the police, a local police official told AFP.
Mr. Yoon, who plunged South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades, spoke for 40 minutes before the judges, the Yonhap news agency reported. His lawyer told AFP that he hoped to “restore his honor”.
He “gave explanations and answered faithfully on the facts, evidence and legal questions,” Yoon Kab-keun told reporters after the hearing which ended after about five hours.
-Mr. Yoon then left the building in a blue Justice Ministry van heading to the Seoul detention center where he is being held.
“Strict sanctions”
The Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), which is leading the investigations, said in a statement that two vehicles carrying members of its team had been attacked by protesters, “creating a dangerous situation”.
The IOC will “demand that the police (impose) strict sanctions based on the evidence collected regarding these actions”.
Mr Yoon sent a letter via his lawyers on Friday thanking his supporters, including evangelical Christians and right-wing YouTubers, for their protests, paying tribute to their “passionate patriotism”.
On Saturday, protesters, waving South Korean and American flags, occupied the main roads in front of the court.
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