S Korean ex-president indicted for abuse of power: prosecutors

SEOUL: Former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol was indicted on Thursday without detention for abuse of power over his martial law declaration, prosecutors said, adding to the impeached ex-leader´s legal jeopardy.

The new indictment comes as Yoon stands trial for orchestrating an insurrection with his December 3 martial law attempt, which sought to suspend civilian rule in democratic South Korea.

Armed soldiers were deployed to parliament under the decree, but the order lasted only around six hours as it was swiftly voted down by opposition MPs, who scaled fences to enter the building. They later impeached Yoon over the martial law declaration.

Yoon, 64, was stripped of all power and privileges in April by the Constitutional Court, which upheld the impeachment motion. He was soon forced to move out of the presidential residence.

Prosecutors first indicted Yoon in January -- when he was still president -- as “the ringleader of an insurrection”, a charge not covered by presidential immunity. “We have since proceeded with the (insurrection) trial while conducting supplementary investigations into the abuse of power allegation, leading to this additional indictment,” prosecutors said in a statement on Thursday.