South Korean Investigators left the official residence of impeached President Yoon Seok-yul on Friday after a standoff that lasted nearly six hours. Attempt to detain him. It is the latest clash in a political crisis that has paralyzed South Korean politics and led to the impeachment of two heads of state in less than a month.
The country's anti-corruption agency said it withdrew its investigators after the Presidential Security Service prevented them from entering Yun's residence for hours, citing concerns for his safety.
The agency said its outnumbered investigators had several clashes with presidential security forces and “deeply regretted the behavior of the suspect, who did not comply with the legal process.”
It said it would be “virtually impossible” to detain Yun as long as she was protected by the Presidential Security Service. The agency plans to “strongly demand” that the country's acting leader, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, direct the service to execute his arrest warrant.
Outside the residence, a large group of pro-Yoon protesters braved freezing temperatures for hours, waving South Korean and American flags and chanting for her safety.
The National Police Agency said it planned to investigate the head and deputy heads of the Presidential Security Service on suspicion of obstruction of official duty and summoned them for questioning on Saturday.
Yoon, a former prosecutor, has resisted efforts by investigators to question him for weeks. The last time he left the residence on December 12, when he went to the nearby presidential office to deliver a televised address to the nation, he issued a defiant statement that he would fight efforts to oust him.
Investigators from the country's anti-corruption agency are weighing coup charges after Yoon, apparently frustrated that his policies were blocked by the opposition-dominated parliament, declared martial law on Dec. 3 and national Sent the army to surround the assembly.
Parliament overturned the announcement within hours in a unanimous vote and impeached Yoon on Dec. 14, accusing him of treason, while South Korean anti-corruption officials and prosecutors launched separate investigations into the incidents. .
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A Seoul court on Tuesday issued a warrant to detain Yoon and a separate warrant to search his residence, but they are difficult to execute as long as he remains in his official residence.
Lawyers for Yoon, who challenged the warrant on Thursday, say it cannot be enforced at his residence because of a law that protects locations potentially connected to military secrets from searches without the consent of the person in charge.
The office said it would discuss further actions but did not immediately say whether it would make another attempt to detain Yun. His detention warrant is valid for one week.
Yun's lawyers have also argued that the Office of Corruption Investigation for High-ranking Officials, which is leading a joint investigation with police and military investigators, does not have the authority to investigate the coup allegations. They said police officers did not have the legal authority to help detain Yun, and could face arrest by “the Presidential Security Service or a citizen.” He did not elaborate further on the claim.
If investigators manage to detain Yoon, they will likely seek a formal arrest warrant from a court. Otherwise, he will be released after 48 hours.
During a background briefing to reporters, an anti-corruption agency official said its investigators were able to get within 200 meters (yards) of Yun's residence but found 10 vehicles and about 200 members of the presidential security forces. A barricade containing and armies. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance with department rules, said three of his prosecutors were eventually allowed to approach the building but could not confirm whether Yoon was inside. .
Park Seong-bi, a lawyer specializing in criminal law, said that while the Presidential Security Act mandates protection for Yoon, it does not give the Presidential Security Service the power to detain detainees on a court order, which is a judicial authority. will be tantamount to violation of Although the president enjoys immunity from prosecution for most of his time in office, this immunity does not extend to charges of rebellion or treason.
“There is a high probability that the act of stopping the execution of the arrest warrant would amount to obstruction of official duty,” he said.
The law requiring the consent of the person in charge to search locations of potential military secrets could hinder Yun's detention. Courts often require law enforcement officials to obtain a search warrant along with an arrest warrant if they need to locate a suspect, which is what the Anti-Corruption Agency did after Yoon. i did
Park said it was unlikely that the country's acting leader, Choi, would get approval, as it would be difficult to see him in charge of Yoon's residence.
Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the liberal opposition Democratic Party, called the anti-corruption agency's withdrawal regrettable and urged the agency to make another attempt to detain Yoon on Friday.
Kwon Young-se, chairman of the emergency leadership committee of Yun's conservative People's Power Party, called the agency's attempt to detain Yun “extremely unfair and highly inappropriate,” saying that there were no plans for Yun to escape or destroy evidence. There is no danger in trying.
Thousands of police officers converged on Yun's residence on Friday, cordoning off a growing group of pro-Yeon protesters who braved freezing temperatures for hours, waving South Korean and American flags to protect him. Raised slogans. There were no immediate reports of major clashes outside the residence.
Yun's defense minister, police chief and several top military commanders have already been arrested for their roles during the martial law era.
Yun's presidential powers have been suspended since the National Assembly voted to impeach him on December 14. Yun's fate now rests with the Constitutional Court, which has begun considering whether to uphold the impeachment and formally remove Yun from office or reinstate him. At least six judges of the nine-member Constitutional Court must vote to remove him from office.
The National Assembly voted last week to impeach Prime Minister Han Deok-soo, who became acting president after Yoon was suspended, to fill three vacant positions on the Constitutional Court before the court reviews Yoon's case. On reluctance to fill.
Facing mounting pressure, Choi, the new acting president, appointed two new judges on Tuesday, increasing the chances of the court upholding Yun's impeachment.