South Korea: President Yoon Suk Yeol arrested at his home

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested Wednesday in an onslaught by investigators, an unprecedented measure reflecting the political crisis caused by his failed attempt to impose martial law in early December.

After an initial raid which turned into a fiasco in early January, agents from the Office for the Investigation of Corruption of High Personalities (CIO) and the police showed up in large numbers, before dawn, at the residence transformed into a fortress where the former prosecutor has been holed up for weeks in an upscale neighborhood of Seoul.

Never before has a sitting head of state been arrested in South Korea.

“I have decided to respond to the Corruption Investigation Bureau,” Yoon announced in a video message, adding that he did not recognize the legality of the investigation but was submitting to it “to avoid any unfortunate bloodshed.”

His interrogation began

Suspended by deputies and targeted by an investigation for “rebellion”, a crime punishable by death, Yoon Suk Yeol had until then always refused to explain himself, pushing prosecutors to resort to arrest warrants in order to force him to do so.

His interrogation began at 11 a.m. local time (2 a.m. GMT). He can be held in custody for 48 hours under the current warrant. Investigators will have to request a new one to possibly extend his detention.

Under impeachment proceedings, Yoon is in turmoil for having briefly introduced martial law on December 3, a shock measure reminiscent of the dark hours of the military dictatorship. He then justified it by his desire to protect the country from “North Korean communist forces” and to “eliminate elements hostile to the State”.

In a Parliament surrounded by soldiers, the deputies had foiled his plans by voting on a text demanding the lifting of this state of exception. Put under pressure by elected officials, thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators and constrained by the Constitution, Yoon Suk Yeol had to comply.

On January 3, the Presidential Security Service (PSS), responsible for protecting heads of state, blocked the IOC’s initial attempt to execute the first arrest warrant against Yoon.

For their second raid, prompted by a new arrest order, the authorities had warned that they would apprehend anyone who obstructed them.

Brief altercations first broke out in front of the gate of the residence, where thousands of supporters were camped determined to defend Mr. Yoon, some chanting “Illegal mandate! », noted AFP.

Teams from the IOC and the police then had to cross the surrounding wall using ladders before getting past vehicle blockades.

Along the way, police arrested the PSS’s interim leader, Yonhap News Agency reported.

“First step towards a return of order”

The arrest of Yoon Suk Yeol is “the first step towards the return of order”, welcomed Park Chan-dae, head of deputies of the Democratic Party (main opposition force) in Parliament.

“History will inevitably remember that the IOC and the police carried out an unjust and illegal mandate,” criticized Kweon Seong-dong, his counterpart from the People’s Power Party (PPP) from which Yoon comes.

The Court has until mid-June to rule on the motion for dismissal voted on December 14 by the deputies. Suspended, Yoon officially remains president while awaiting the verdict of the court which could permanently dismiss him and call elections, or reinstate him in his functions.