One of impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s motorcade leaves for the Senior Officials Corruption Investigation Bureau from the gate of the presidential residence in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.
Lee Jin-man/AP
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Lee Jin-man/AP
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean law enforcement arrested ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday over his brief imposition of martial law last month. In a recorded video message before being escorted to the headquarters of an anti-corruption agency, Yoon lamented that “the rule of law has completely collapsed in this country” but said he was complying with the mandate of stop to avoid clashes between the police. and the presidential security service.
A series of black SUVs, some equipped with sirens, were seen leaving the presidential compound under police escort. A vehicle apparently carrying Yoon later arrived at the Corruption Investigation Bureau for Senior Officials in the neighboring city of Gwacheon.
Yoon was taken into custody about three hours after hundreds of law enforcement officers entered the residential compound in their second attempt to arrest him following the imposition of martial law last month .
Yoon’s lawyers tried to persuade investigators not to execute the arrest warrant, saying the president would voluntarily come forward for questioning, but the agency refused.
Police officers apparently encountered no significant resistance from presidential security forces as they approached Yoon’s residence and there were no immediate reports of clashes.
More than a thousand anti-corruption investigators and police officers could be deployed in the operation to apprehend Yoon, locked up for weeks in the Hannam-dong residence in the capital Seoul, while vowing to “fight to the end” against efforts to oust him.
Yoon justified his declaration of martial law on December 3 as a legitimate act of governance against an “anti-state” opposition using its legislative majority to thwart his agenda.
The anti-graft agency is conducting a joint investigation with police and military into whether Yoon’s declaration of martial law amounted to an attempted rebellion and sought to detain him after he ignored several summons to an interrogation. They pledged to take stronger steps to stop him after presidential security services blocked their initial efforts on January 3.
National anti-corruption agency investigators and police officers go to the residence of deposed President Yoon Suk Yeol to execute an arrest warrant for Yoon in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.
Ahn Young-joon/AP
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Ahn Young-joon/AP
The scene inside
After an hours-long standoff at the entrance to the complex, anti-corruption investigators and police were seen climbing the hilly complex. Police officers had previously been seen using ladders to scale rows of buses placed by presidential security services near the entrance to the complex.
Anti-corruption investigators and police then arrived at a metal gate bearing a gold presidential mark, located near Yoon’s residential building. Some police officers were seen walking through a security door at the side of the metal gate, joined by one of Yoon’s lawyers and his chief of staff. Presidential security then removed a bus and other vehicles that were parked inside the gate as a barricade.
Despite a court warrant for Yoon’s arrest, presidential security insisted they were obligated to protect the deposed president and fortified the compound with barbed wire and rows of buses blocking passageways.
If investigators manage to arrest Yoon Suk Yeol, they will likely ask the court for permission to make a formal arrest. Otherwise, he will be released after 48 hours.
Preparations and concerns
As tensions escalated, South Korea’s interim leader, Vice Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, issued a statement on Wednesday calling on law enforcement and presidential security services to ensure that there are no “physical confrontations”.
The liberal opposition Democratic Party, which led a legislative campaign that led to Yoon’s impeachment on Dec. 14, issued a statement calling on the presidential security services to stand down and cooperate with Yoon’s detention. Lawmakers from Yoon’s People Power Party held a rally near the presidential residence, denouncing efforts to arrest him as illegal.
The National Police Agency has convened several meetings of field commanders in Seoul and neighboring Gyeonggi Province in recent days to plan their arrest efforts, and the size of these forces has fueled speculation that more than A thousand officers could be deployed in a possible multi-day operation. The agency and police have openly warned that presidential bodyguards who obstruct the execution of the mandate could be arrested.
Yoon’s lawyers argued that the detention warrant issued by the Seoul West District Court was invalid. They cited a law that protects places potentially linked to military secrets from searches without the consent of the person responsible – believed to be Yoon. The court’s warrant for Yoon’s detention is valid until January 21.
Yoon’s supporters and critics staged competing protests near the residence – some vowing to protect him, others calling for his imprisonment – as thousands of police in yellow jackets closely monitored the tense situation.
What led to this
Yoon declared martial law and deployed troops around the National Assembly on December 3. It only lasted a few hours before lawmakers managed to circumvent the blockade and vote to lift the measure.
Yoon’s presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on December 14, accusing him of rebellion. His fate now rests in the hands of the Constitutional Court, which has begun deliberating whether to formally remove Yoon from office or dismiss the charges and reinstate him.
The Constitutional Court held its first formal hearing in the case on Tuesday, but the session lasted less than five minutes because Yoon refused to attend. The next hearing is set for Thursday and the court will then continue the trial whether Yoon is present or not.
