Court orders formal arrest of impeached South Korean President Yoon

The impeached President has been in custody since his arrest on Wednesday at his residence on charges of masterminding an insurrection and abuse of power, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be apprehended

Seoul: A South Korean court has ordered the formal arrest of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived imposition of martial law, which shocked the nation and plunged it into its worst political crisis in decades.

The hearing at the Seoul Western District Court on whether to issue an arrest warrant ended on Saturday after five hours. It ran from 2 pm to 6.50 pm, with Yoon in attendance.

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Yoon then returned to the detention centre where he has been held since Wednesday to await the court’s decision. “The President faithfully explained and responded regarding the facts, evidence and legal issues,” his lawyer, Yun Gap-geun, told reporters outside the court. “We will wait quietly until the court’s decision comes out.”

Earlier, Seok Dong-hyeon, one of Yoon’s lawyers, said prosecutors from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) presented their case for his arrest and the lawyers followed with PowerPoint presentations on their counterarguments.

Yoon, dressed in a suit, also spoke for 40 minutes. In his final statement, he spoke for another five minutes before the hearing ended.

The impeached President has been in custody since his arrest on Wednesday at his residence on charges of masterminding an insurrection and abuse of power, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be apprehended.

Yoon was transported to the court from a detention centre in Uiwang, about 20 km south of Seoul, in a blue van escorted by police and the Presidential Security Service.

The convoy bypassed the designated photo area for the media and entered the court building directly, while thousands of supporters gathered nearby, waving South Korean and US flags and chanting Yoon’s name in a display of solidarity.

Yoon chose to attend the court hearing to explain the legitimacy of the martial law imposition and restore his tarnished reputation, his lawyer Yun said in a message sent to reporters.

Since his detention, Yoon has refused to appear for questioning over his martial law bid.