South Korean court orders arrest of impeached president Yoon

A South Korean court has issued an arrest warrant for impeached and suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Yoon briefly suspended civilian rule on December 3, 2024, plunging South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades.

He was stripped of his presidential duties by parliament over the action but a constitutional court ruling is pending on whether to confirm the impeachment.

“The arrest warrant and search warrant were issued this morning,” the Joint Investigation Headquarters said in a statement on Tuesday, December 31.

The conservative leader faces criminal charges of insurrection, which could result in life imprisonment or even the death penalty.

Investigators probing Yoon over his declaration of martial law requested the warrant on Monday after he failed to report for questioning a third time.

“There is a concern that the individual may refuse to comply with summons without justifiable reasons,” a Corruption Investigation Office official told reporters on Tuesday.

The official said there was “sufficient probable cause” to suspect the commission of a crime, with the warrant valid until January 6 and Yoon likely to be held at the Seoul detention centre.

Yoon’s lawyer called the warrant “illegal and invalid”, saying investigators lacked the authority to probe the president.

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“The arrest warrant and search and seizure warrant issued at the request of an agency without investigative authority are illegal and invalid,” a statement sent to AFP by lawyer Yoon Kab-keun said.

He said his client was not guilty of insurrection, adding there was no intention of disrupting “the constitutional order” or to stage “an uprising”.

Yoon Suk Yeol’s lawyers also said they would apply for a court injunction to invalidate the warrant.

Investigators also raided the army’s Counterintelligence Command offices on Tuesday and indicted two top commanders on charges they said were linked to insurrection and abuse of authority.

Yoon Suk Yeol is being investigated by prosecutors as well as a joint team comprising police, defence ministry and anti-corruption officials.

A 10-page prosecutors’ report stated that he authorised the military to fire weapons if needed to enter parliament during his failed martial law bid.

The report also said there was evidence that he had been discussing declaring martial law with senior military officials as early as March.

Yoon Suk Yeol’s lawyer had previously dismissed the prosecutors’ report, saying it was “a one-sided account that neither corresponds to objective circumstances nor common sense”.

The Star