A South Korean court issued arrest warrants on Tuesday President Yoon Suk-yeol is impeached and search his office and residence short-term declaration of martial law.
The country's anti-corruption agency said it was investigating whether his statement could be called sedition. But experts still say there is little chance of detentions or searches unless Yoon is formally removed from office.
Seoul's Western District Court issued warrants for Yoon's arrest and search warrants for the presidential office and residence in central Seoul, according to a statement from the High-Level Officials Corruption Investigation Bureau, which is conducting a joint investigation with police and military authorities.
Under South Korean law, the leader of the rebellion could face the death penalty or life in prison if convicted. Yun enjoys presidential immunity from most criminal prosecutions, but the privilege does not extend to charges of rebellion or treason.
Yun's powers were suspended after the opposition-controlled National Assembly voted to impeach him on Dec. 14 over his imposition of martial law, which drew hundreds of soldiers and police to the streets of Seoul.
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Yun argued that his decree was a legitimate act of governance, calling it a warning to the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, which he described as a “monster” and “anti-government force” that has used its legislative majority to impeach top officials, undermine the government's budget, and which, as he claims to sympathize with North Korea.
The Constitutional Court must decide whether to remove Yun from the presidency or reinstate him.
Experts say Yun is likely to ignore the warrants. He ignored repeated requests from investigative bodies to appear for questioning, and the presidential security service blocked attempts to search his office and residence, citing a law that prohibits raids on websites that store state secrets.
On Monday, Yun's lawyer rejected the anti-corruption agency's request for warrants, saying it lacked the legal authority to investigate the rebellion allegations.
The anti-corruption agency said it had no immediate plans on how to proceed with the warrants.
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“If Yoon does not voluntarily allow them to detain him, there is no way to detain him,” said Choi Jin, director of the Seoul Institute for Presidential Leadership. “Should investigators engage in hand-to-hand combat with security?”
Choi said investigators will still visit Yoon's residence to show that they are doing their job strictly and honestly.
Park Seong-min, president of Seoul-based policy consulting firm MIN Consulting, said the push for an arrest warrant was likely an attempt to get Yoon to cooperate with the investigation.
Former President Park Geun-hye, who was ousted from office in 2017 after being impeached over a corruption scandal, also refused to meet with prosecutors while in office. She was questioned by them and was arrested after the Constitutional Court removed her from office.
Yun's imposition of martial law lasted just six hours, but caused enormous political upheaval, halting high-level diplomacy and shaking financial markets. Despite Yun's deployment of troops and police, enough lawmakers managed to enter the assembly hall to unanimously repeal it.
Yuna's defense minister, the police chief and several top military commanders have already been arrested for their role in imposing martial law.
Yun said he was not trying to stop the assembly, saying troops were sent to maintain order, and denied plans to arrest politicians. But the comments sent to the meeting by the now arrested commanders of military units contradict this statement. Kwak Jeong-keun, commander of the army's Special Warfare Command, testified in the National Assembly that Yoon urged troops to “quickly break down the door and pull out the lawmakers inside.” Kwak said he didn't follow Yoon's orders.
The country's political crisis deepened last Friday when the Democratic Party and other smaller opposition parties voted to impeach acting President Han Dak-soo amid controversy over his refusal to fill three Constitutional Court judgeships. Observers say the addition of new judges could affect the court's decision to impeach Yun.
Vice Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Sang Mok has become the new interim leader of South Korea.