South Korean security or military forces prevented anti-corruption investigators from arresting the country’s impeached president after a nearly six-hour standoff Friday, an official said.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) told the press it suspended the effort to enforce an arrest warrant against the impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol at his official residence at about 1:30 p.m. local time (11:30 p.m. Jan. 2 Eastern Time), South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported.
“We determined that executing the detention warrant would be practically impossible due to the continued confrontation, and suspended the execution out of concern for the safety of on-site personnel caused by the resistance,” the agency said. “We plan to decide on the next steps following a review.”
“We express serious regret over the behavior of the suspect who refused to comply with legally set procedures,” the CIO told the press.
The 100-strong team of 20 CIO investigators and 80 police officers could not get past a barricade comprising over 10 vehicles and some 200 Presidential Security Service (PSS) or military personnel, according to a CIO official. “I understand there were scuffles big and small at each stage,” the official added.
The presence of over 1,000 pro-Yoon protesters also complicated the CIO’s attempt, according to the outlet. Law enforcement estimated that the number swelled to 11,000 by the time the incident came to a close. The crowd cheered the outcome, yelling “we won” and the name of the president while flying South Korean and U.S. flags, the outlet reported.
The PSS or military allowed three CIO prosecutors to reach the door of the residence but the prosecutors could not tell if Yoon was inside as they were not allowed in, the official said, Yonhap reported.
The prosecutors met with two of Yoon‘s attorneys, who alleged that the arrest warrant was illegal and that the CIO had no authority to investigate allegations of insurrection.
South Korea’s acting president, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, did not immediately respond to calls from the opposition to order the PSS to stand down, according to Politico.
Yoon would have become the first sitting South Korean leader to be arrested in the country’s history had the CIO succeeded, according to the BBC.
Yoon had been holed up in the residence since Dec. 12, days after he declared martial law and sent troops to the National Assembly building in response to his alleged concern that South Korea’s opposition-dominated parliament was blocking his policies, Politico reported.
Yoon declared martial law on Dec. 3, or 10:29 p.m. Tuesday in local time, according to The Associated Press (AP). He claimed that his political opponents were “sympathizing with North Korea” and speaking of “anti-state activities.” (RELATED: Legislators Defy Martial Law Declaration After South Korean President Vows To ‘Eradicate Pro-North Korean Forces’)
“I will eliminate anti-state forces as quickly as possible and normalize the country,” Yoon said, claiming that he would “eradicate pro-North Korean forces.”
Yoon did not provide evidence to substantiate his allegations, the AP reported. Lawmakers urgently convened and scrambled to enter the parliament — some struggling with police and soldiers, according to videos. Parliamentary speaker Woo Won-shik climbed a fence to enter the building and begin the parliamentary session, according to the outlet. The lawmakers voted unanimously to lift martial law. Yoon withdrew the soldiers and martial law was later lifted.
Lawmakers then impeached Yoon on Dec. 14, alleging that he had staged a rebellion, and an arrest warrant went out Tuesday, Politico reported. Yoon’s lawyers challenged the warrant in court Thursday.
Martial law would have seen the military temporarily suspend political institutions and individual liberties, including freedom of assembly and the press, the AP reported. The power is a holdover from the post-Korean War decades of dictatorships in South Korea.
This article was originally published at dailycaller.com
