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Korea Herald
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Yoon skips trial as court battle escalates, probe deepens
Ex-president now faces tough legal battle that could keep him behind bars until Supreme Court ruling Former President Yoon Suk Yeol skipped his insurrection trial Thursday, just hours after being detained over evidence-tampering concerns in a separate case, prompting a sharp dispute over the legitimacy of his sudden health-related absence. The special counsel team urged the Seoul Central District Court to take appropriate measures against Yoon so that the former president does not miss his criminal trial hearing in which he was supposed to appear as a defendant. 'The defendant was absent without a valid reason. We request that the court insist that the defendant prevent such an incident from occurring again. Should the defendant be absent again, we ask that measures such as forcing the defendant to attend the hearing be considered by the court,' said the special counsel team. Yoon's attorneys argued that he submitted a notice of absence before the hearing, citing health reasons and that it was not appropriate for him to attend the trial just hours after he was detained. The Seoul Central District Court approved the special counsel's request for a warrant while it investigated allegations including abuse of power. Yoon was formally taken into detention early Thursday , four months after he was released in March, when a warrant related ot the insurrection case expired. 'The defendant had been detained for less than eight hours. And even if he was notified by fax or phone call to appear at court, we question whether such a summons was legally valid,' said Yoon's legal representatives. Now in custody, Yoon is expected to face at least 20 more criminal trial hearings this year, with the possibility of being detained for up to 18 months as his case moves through the courts. The court issued a 20-day detention warrant ahead of his indictment by the special counsel. If indicted while in custody, he could be held for up to six months during the district court trial, with additional six-month detentions possible at both the appellate and Supreme Court stages. The former president will now attend his criminal trial hearings from the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province. Following the court's approval of his detention, Yoon had his personal information verified, was assigned an inmate number, and had his mugshot taken. The presidential security personnel who were previously assigned to the former president have also been withdrawn. According to the Former President Special Treatment Act stipulates security and protection may be provided to former president and their spouses for a necessary period. However, as he has been taken into custody and transferred to the correctional authorities, such privileges are no longer applied. Yoon is expected to travel to and from court without any security personnel, accompanied only by correctional officers and transported in a convoy vehicle. Yoon was protected by the Presidential Security Service officials during his first 52-day detention period — from mid-January to early March — as he was waiting for the Constitutional Court's ruling that impeached him in early April. The special counsel team is also expected to gain momentum with its investigation as it is scheduled to question the arrested former president on Friday. The special counsel team — led by Cho Eun-suk to investigate illegalities related to the former president's short-lived martial law declaration. Yoon's alleged treason is one of the key allegations that the investigators will focus on, as the special counsel team did not include this suspicion in the latest warrant request, as substantial materials remained for investigation. The proposed treason charge centers on the former president allegedly ordering a military drone to be deployed over Pyongyang, North Korea, as part of a scheme to falsely justify his martial law imposition by goading the North into aggressive action. Additional probes into the former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo are also expected, as he was named as one of the accomplices who attempted to prepare false public documents. The special counsel previously revealed that Yoon fabricated an official martial law document two days after declaring martial law, on Dec. 5, 2024. Though the martial law imposition was lifted by the National Assembly, Han and former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun reportedly signed the backdated document to make Yoon's martial law declaration appear as if it had been issued through an appropriate legal procedure. Kang Eui-gu, at the time a secretary at the presidential office who drafted the document, reportedly testified in the special counsel investigation that the document was discarded at Han's request and upon Yoon's approval. The decision violated Article 82 of the Constitution, which stipulates that acts of the president under law shall be executed in writing and such documents need to be signed by the prime minister and Cabinet members concerned.
Hans India
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
South Korea: Court hearing on potential arrest warrant for ex-President Yoon ends after nearly seven hours
Seoul: A South Korean court hearing on whether to issue an arrest warrant for former President Yoon Suk Yeol over charges related to his failed attempt to impose martial law ended Wednesday after nearly seven hours. The hearing at the Seoul Central District Court ran from about 2:20 p.m. to 9 p.m., during which a special counsel team argued for the warrant's issuance, while Yoon's defence contested it. Yoon, who attended the hearing and gave a final statement for about 20 minutes, left the court building without responding to reporters' questions. The court is expected to decide on the warrant late in the day or early Thursday. Until then, the former president will wait for the outcome at Seoul Detention Centre in Uiwang, just south of the capital. The hearing came after special counsel Cho Eun-suk requested a warrant to arrest Yoon over five key charges, including alleged illegalities in calling select Cabinet members to a meeting held shortly before he declared martial law on December 3. Among the charges, the former president is accused of creating a false martial law declaration document after December 3 to add legitimacy to his actions and having it signed by then Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and then Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun before discarding it. The other charges involve his alleged instruction to the presidential spokesperson for foreign press to distribute false statements denying his intent to destroy the constitutional order through the martial law attempt, his alleged instruction to the Presidential Security Service to block his detention by investigators in early January and his alleged order to delete call records from secure phones used by three military commanders. Yoon's side has rejected all charges, Yonhap news agency reported. In the event the court issues the warrant, it will be the second time Yoon is placed in custody. The first time was in January when he was still in office.
South China Morning Post
06-07-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
South Korean prosecutors request detention for ex-president Yoon
South Korean special prosecutors filed a new request on Sunday to detain former president Yoon Suk-yeol, a day after he appeared before them for questioning over his declaration of martial law last year. Yoon, who is facing a criminal trial on insurrection charges over the martial law declaration in December, was arrested in January after resisting authorities trying to take him into custody, but was released after 52 days on technical grounds. 'Detention request is related to allegations of abuse of power and obstruction of justice,' the special prosecutors investigating the declaration said in a statement. The spokesperson for the special prosecutors declined to elaborate when asked why the detention request was submitted, saying they would explain it in court proceedings to decide on whether it should be granted. Yoon's lawyers said in a statement that the special prosecutors had not provided credible evidence for the charges they were seeking, and his legal team would 'explain in court that the request for an arrest warrant is unreasonable'. Park Jong-joon, former head of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), appears at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office to be questioned by a special counsel team over former president Yoon's insurrection charges in connection with his martial law declaration on Friday. Photo: EPA Yoon has been accused of mobilising presidential guards to stop authorities from arresting him in January, but the court has previously dismissed the request for an arrest warrant after Yoon had initially refused to appear for questioning.
Hans India
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
South Korea: Special counsel seeks warrant to arrest ex-President Yoon in martial law case
A special counsel sought a warrant Sunday to arrest former President Yoon Suk Yeol over allegations related to his declaration of martial law, officials said. The independent counsel, led by Cho Eun-suk, filed an arrest warrant request with the Seoul Central District Court against Yoon for alleged abuse of power, falsification of official documents, violation of the Presidential Security Act and obstruction of special official duties, among other charges, in connection with his declaration of martial law on December 3, according to officials from the counsel team. The specific reasons for the warrant request were not disclosed, Yonhap news agency reported. The counsel has conducted an intensive investigation into Yoon over insurrection and other charges since its launch last month. Most recently, Yoon was summoned and underwent several hours of questioning on Saturday. Yoon has completely denied the allegations during in-person interrogations, raising concerns about possible destruction of evidence or collusion with accomplices, according to the officials. Yoon is alleged to have attempted to block investigators from executing a court warrant to detain him in January. He is also suspected of directing the Presidential Security Service to delete records from secure phones used by several military commanders following his failed martial law bid. The investigation has further focused on suspicions that Yoon had hastily convened a Cabinet meeting on the night of the martial law declaration to meet the quorum required to enforce the decree. The treason charge, however, was not included in the warrant. The former president is alleged to have ordered a military drone operations unit to deploy drones over Pyongyang to fabricate a justification for declaring martial law. "The treason allegation is still under investigation. As a significant portion of the inquiry remains, it was not included in the arrest warrant," Deputy Special Counsel Park Ji-young told a press briefing. Yoon's side pushed back, calling the move "excessive and unwarranted." "We have fully explained the allegations and made it clear that no crime can be established under the law," Yoon's legal team said in a statement. "The special counsel has not presented any objective evidence." Yoon was detained on January 15, after ignoring three summonses from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, which was investigating the martial law incident. He was then formally arrested, becoming the first sitting South Korean president to be taken into custody. But the Seoul Central District Court accepted Yoon's request to cancel the arrest, and he was released on March 8 after 52 days in detention.
Hans India
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
South Korea: Ex-President Yoon appears for 2nd questioning by special counsel
Seoul: South Korean former President Yoon Suk Yeol appeared Saturday for a second round of questioning by the special counsel team's investigation into his insurrection charges tied to his failed martial law bid in December. Yoon entered the office of special counsel Cho Eun-suk, located within the Seoul High Prosecutors Office, at 9 a.m., without answering reporters' questions. It marks his second questioning by the team, following the first session last Saturday, Yonhap news agency reported. The special counsel team is expected to question him over allegations that he directed the Presidential Security Service to block investigators from executing a warrant to detain him in January and to delete records from secure phones used by several military commanders after his failed martial law bid. The team is also likely to examine the circumstances surrounding the martial law declaration on December 3. Earlier this week, former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and two other ministers were questioned as part of the expanding investigation into Cabinet members involved on the night martial law was declared. Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-suk, earlier on Friday summoned Education Minister Lee Ju-ho and Park Jong-joon, former head of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), in connection with his probe into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration. Lee and Park were reportedly asked to appear at Cho's office within the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul on Friday afternoon. Cho's office plans to question Lee about the circumstances before and after Yoon convened an emergency Cabinet meeting on the night of December 3 last year prior to the martial law imposition. Lee did not attend the Cabinet meeting because he was not given prior notice. The special counsel's office has been calling in all of Yoon's Cabinet ministers, including former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, since earlier this week for similar questioning. The office plans to question Park as part of its investigation into allegations that Yoon ordered the PSS to block investigators from executing a warrant to detain him in early January, reports Yonhap news agency.
