South Korea investigators ask acting president to clear way for Yoon’s arrest

SEOUL: South Korean investigators again asked the country’s acting president on Saturday to order the presidential security service to comply with an arrest warrant for impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol.The security service, along with military troops, on Friday prevented prosecutors from arresting Yoon Suk Yeol in a six-hour standoff inside Yoon’s compound. The investigators secured the warrant to arrest Yoon over his brief declaration of martial law last month.

The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, which is investigating the case, said on Saturday it had again asked acting President Choi Sang-mok, the nation’s finance minister, to order the presidential security service to cooperate with the warrant. A finance ministry spokesperson declined to comment. The police asked the chief of the presidential security service, of Park Chong-jun, to appear for questioning on Tuesday, Yonhap News reported.

Earlier, thousands of rival South Korean protesters rallied in the capital Saturday, a day after a failed attempt to arrest suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol for imposing a short-lived martial law decree that led to his impeachment.The country has been plunged into political chaos since last month, with Yoon defiantly holed up in the presidential residence, surrounded by hundreds of loyal security officers who have so far resisted efforts by prosecutors to arrest him.

Thousands of protesters, both for and against Yoon, gathered in front of the residence and along major roads in Seoul on Saturday, demanding his arrest or calling for his impeachment to be declared invalid. Supporter Kim Chul-hong, 60, said Yoon’s arrest could undermine South Korea’s security alliance with the US and Japan.

“Protecting President Yoon means safeguarding our country’s security against threats from North Korea,” he told AFP.

Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, South Korea’s largest umbrella union, attempted to march to Yoon’s residence to protest against him but were blocked by police.

It said two of its members were arrested, and several others were injured in clashes.

Yoon faces criminal charges of insurrection, one of a few crimes not subject to presidential immunity, meaning he could be sentenced to prison or, at worst, the death penalty.

If the warrant is executed, Yoon would become the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested.

Investigators have asked Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok, who was installed as acting president a week ago, to back the warrant by ordering the presidential security service to cooperate.