South Korean investigators abandon arrest of President Yoon

AFP | Seoul

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South Korean investigators abandoned their attempt to arrest impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol at his residence yesterday over a failed martial law bid, citing safety concerns after a standoff with his security team.

Yoon, who has already been suspended from duty by lawmakers, would become the first sitting president in South Korean history to be arrested if the warrant is carried out.

The president, who issued a bungled declaration on December 3 that shook the vibrant East Asian democracy and briefly lurched it back to the dark days of military rule, faces imprisonment or, at worst, the death penalty.

“Regarding the execution of the arrest warrant today, it was determined that the execution was effectively impossible due to the ongoing standoff,” the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), probing Yoon over his martial law decree, said in a statement.

“Concern for the safety of personnel on-site led to the decision to halt” the arrest attempt, the statement said of the confrontation with Yoon’s presidential security service and its military unit.

Around 20 investigators and 80 police officers were heavily outnumbered by around 200 soldiers and security personnel linking arms to block their way after entering the presidential compound, a CIO official told a briefing.