South Korea’s presidential security chief warns of violent attempt to arrest Yoon by Reuters

Written by Hyunjoo Jin and Jack Kim

SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s security chief said on Friday that the deposed leader, who faces arrest as part of a criminal investigation into his attempt to impose martial law on December 3, was treated unfairly for a sitting leader and warned that… bloodshed. .

Park Chung-joon, the head of the presidential security service, is himself under investigation for obstruction of official duty related to the six-hour standoff last week between presidential security agents and investigators who were trying to execute an arrest warrant for Yoon.

Upon arriving at police headquarters for questioning, Park, a former senior police official, said the current attempt to arrest a sitting president was wrong and that Yoon deserved treatment “commensurate” with the country’s situation.

“I believe there should not be any physical clash or bloodshed under any circumstances,” Park told reporters, adding that acting President Choi Sang-mok had not responded to his request to provide safety guarantees to the officials involved.

Hundreds of Preventive Security agents surrounded the presidential complex and thwarted investigators from attempting to arrest Yoon last Friday. The investigators were withdrawn due to the risk of a clash.

Officials from the Senior Officials Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), which is leading the investigation, said Preventive Security agents were carrying firearms during the standoff although no weapons were drawn.

Investigators obtained a new arrest warrant this week after Yoon defied repeated summons to appear for questioning.

Yoon’s lawyers said Thursday that the arrest warrant was illegal and invalid.

Yoon is undergoing a separate trial before the Constitutional Court to review Parliament’s decision to impeach him on December 14 to determine whether he will be permanently removed from office or reinstated. His lawyers said Yoon would accept the ruling.

As Yoon awaits his fate holed up inside his hillside residence, opinion polls released this week showed a rebound in support for the ruling People Power Party and a decline in calls for his permanent removal.

A Gallup Korea poll published on Friday showed that 64% of participants supported Yoon’s removal from office, compared to 75% who favored doing so shortly after martial law was declared.

Support for the PPP rose to 34%, a similar level to the period before December 3, in a poll of 1,004 people this week, from 24% about a month ago.

Analysts said the lingering uncertainty over Yoon’s fate had not only emboldened his supporters but eased some critics’ concerns that the leader of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party, who is himself on trial for criminal wrongdoing, might become president.