Investigators demand an arrest warrant for the South Korean president

Investigators in Seoul reported yesterday that they had asked the judiciary to issue an arrest warrant against South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who was impeached by Parliament after declaring martial law over his failure to appear for interrogation.

Yoon briefly declared martial law this month, plunging the country into its worst political crisis in decades.

As a result of the move, Parliament stripped him of his presidential duties, but a constitutional court has not yet issued a ruling confirming his removal. The ousted conservative president also faces criminal charges of “rebellion,” which could lead to his imprisonment for life or even the death penalty. Investigators summoned Yoon He was interrogated three times, but he refused to come again and again. The investigation team said in a statement: “The Joint Investigation Headquarters issued an arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk-yeol at the Seoul Western District Court.”

The investigators’ request is the first attempt in the country’s history to forcefully arrest a president before completing the impeachment procedures.

Prosecutors are participating in the investigation against Yoon, along with a joint team of police, the Ministry of Defense, and anti-corruption officials. After the statement, Yoon’s lawyers sent a letter to the district court stating that the arrest warrant was “unjustified.” Lawyer Yoon Kap-kyun told reporters that the warrant “was requested from an agency that was not authorized to issue it, and the move does not comply with the requirements for issuing an arrest warrant based on the Criminal Procedure Law.”