South Korean court issues arrest warrant for Yoon due to martial law decree | news

breakbreak,

The court’s issuance of the arrest warrant represents the first time that South Korean authorities have sought to detain a sitting president.

A South Korean court issued an arrest warrant for deposed President Yoon Suk-yul because he declared martial law for a short period in a historical precedent.

The Seoul Western District Court on Tuesday approved the arrest warrant following an earlier request from the Joint Investigation Headquarters, which is investigating the embattled South Korean leader on charges of rebellion and abuse of power.

The Joint Investigation Headquarters said in a statement: “The arrest warrant and search warrant for President Yeon Suk-yeol were issued this morning, at the request of the Joint Investigation Headquarters.”

This move represents the first time that authorities have sought to arrest a sitting South Korean president.

It is unclear when authorities might try to detain Yoon.

Leon’s security detail had previously prevented investigators from executing a number of search warrants at the presidential office complex and the president’s official residence.

South Korean media speculated that Yoon was unlikely to be arrested soon, as authorities would likely seek coordination with the presidential security service.

Yun faces the possibility of life imprisonment, or even the death penalty, for briefly imposing martial law on December 3, which plunged the East Asian country into its biggest political crisis in decades.

Yoon Jap Jeon, Yoon’s lawyer, said in a statement that the arrest warrant had been issued “Illegal and invalid,” arguing that the CIO had no authority to investigate the president.

Kwon Seung-dong, leader of Yoon’s People Power Party, also criticized the court’s decision to issue an arrest warrant, calling it “inappropriate.”

Yoon has been suspended from his duties since last December 14, while the National Assembly was in session They voted to sack him In a vote of 204-85.

Exacerbating the country’s leadership crisis, the opposition-controlled Legislative Council voted on Friday to impeach acting President Han Dak-soo, transferring presidential power to Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mook.

The Democratic Party and several small opposition parties voted to impeach Han over his refusal to immediately appoint three judges to fill vacancies on the Constitutional Court, which is deliberating whether to uphold Yoon’s impeachment.

The court has up to six months to make its decision, after which Yoon will be removed from office or returned to the presidency.