Special counsel seeks warrant to detain ex-President Yoon
The independent counsel investigating former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived imposition of martial law sought a warrant Tuesday to detain him after he repeatedly snubbed summonses for questioning over alleged obstruction of official duties and other charges, officials said, Yonhap reports.
The special counsel, led by Cho Eun-suk, filed for the warrant against Yoon with the Seoul Central District Court, citing Yoon's refusal to comply with three summonses from the police for questioning over charges related to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration.
"The counsel, which took over the case Monday, decided to file for an arrest warrant in consideration of the investigation's continuity," the investigation team said in a notice.
The action came shortly after the special counsel began operations last Wednesday, following the passage of a bill in early June mandating an independent probe into insurrection charges against Yoon.
"Former President Yoon ... is the only person (of many suspects involved) who has not complied with the investigation," the investigation team said.
"As the special counsel's investigation is bound by a time limit and is expected to cover a wide range of allegations, we have no intention of being dragged around (by Yoon)," it added, vowing a "stern" investigation. The special counsel has up to 150 days to complete the probe.
Before transferring the case to the special counsel, the police summoned Yoon for questioning on June 5, 12 and 19, but he snubbed all three requests.
Yoon has been booked as a suspect on charges he ordered the Presidential Security Service (PSS) to block the execution of a detention warrant against him by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) in early January.
He is also suspected of ordering the PSS to delete records from secure phones used by three military commanders shortly after his attempt to impose martial law failed.
Yoon's lawyer has cited what he described as the illegal execution of a detention warrant by the CIO as the reason why Yoon defied the summonses.
The court is expected to reach a decision on the warrant request after Wednesday.
Earlier, it was reported that former president of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol has attended the 8th hearing of insurrection trial.
