Seoul, Korea
CNN
–
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is in custody over an independent investigation into last year’s declaration of martial law.
According to an independent lawyer leading the investigation, the Seoul Central District Court approved a warrant for Yoon’s re-arrest early Thursday morning due to concerns over the destruction of evidence.
Yoon’s shocking December declaration has been widely accused of putting South Korea in a constitutional crisis and being at the heart of the country’s democracy. He reversed the course within six hours after lawmakers entered the assembly and voted unanimously to block it.
Yoon was detained on the charge of leading a rebellion in January and becoming the first president in South Korea, arrested while in office. He was released in March after Seoul Court cancelled his arrest warrant on technical reasons.
In April, the Constitutional Court unanimously decided to remove Yun from his job, calling his actions “a serious betrayal of people’s trust.”
He has since faced multiple criminal investigations. According to an independent lawyer, Yoon is currently facing charges that include abuse of power and obstructing official duties.
At the request of the leaked warrant, the lawyers alleged that Yoon had declared martial law in an attempt to overcome the political shaking caused by the opposition majority and several senior officials in the National Assembly.
He is accused of deploying troops to stop lawmakers from entering parliamentary buildings, overturning the decree, and giving orders to “break the door” and “tear people out when fired.” Yoon’s lawyer denies that he ordered the use of a firearm.
The lawyers also allege that Yoon directed the commander to prioritize arresting major politicians, including the current president, then-opposition leader Lee Jae-myung. He is further accused of ordering Presidential Security Services to obscure communication records from secure phones used after martial law was lifted.
Additionally, Yoon has been accused of obstructing the enforcement of warrants by the Corruption Investigation Bureau (CIO) in December and January by mobilizing the president’s security details and allowing the use of force.
Yoon’s lawyers said the warrant request was “urgently unfair” and called the investigation “flawed and politically motivated.” They said that the questions of the independent lawyers during Yun’s investigation were only at the basic level of the allegations and that the warrant request did not include treason.
They added that most individuals involved have already been detained and are in a standing trial, so all relevant evidence is secured and there is no risk of the evidence being destroyed.
An independent lawyer team was established after he investigated Yun after taking office and was founded after Lee was elected in the Snap presidential election in June.
