Former South Korean president arrested – Yun taken to prosecutors' office for questioning
Authorities announced today the arrest of former South Korean President Yun Seok-yeol, about a month and a half after he plunged the country into political chaos by declaring temporary martial law on December 3, following a raid on his residence.
The team investigating him “executed an arrest warrant for President Yun Seok-yeol today at 10:33 a.m. local time,” authorities said. Yun, who faces charges of “insurrection” for declaring martial law — a charge that carries the death penalty — is the first South Korean head of state to be arrested in the country’s history.
Police officers, prosecutors and other officials from the high-level corruption investigation agency took the former head of state to the prosecutor's office for questioning, according to the official South Korean news agency Yonhap.
More than 3.000 police and investigators gathered at the former president's residence before dawn, pushing through a crowd of supporters and lawmakers from his ruling People's Power Party who had gathered there to try to prevent his arrest. Minor clashes broke out.
Yun himself said that he decided to surrender even though he considers the process illegal in order to avoid "bloodshed."
Yun's defense argues from the outset that Mr. Yun's arrest is illegal, an action with the sole purpose of publicly humiliating him.
His decision to declare martial law stunned the Asian country and plunged it into an unprecedented political crisis, leading to his suspension from parliament on December 14.
The Constitutional Court has begun examining whether he will indeed be removed from power.
Source: protothema.gr