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Aide of SKorean President: Halt Efforts01/14 06:12
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- The top aide of impeached South Korean President
Yoon Suk Yeol pleaded with law enforcement agencies on Tuesday to abandon their
efforts to detain him over his imposition of martial law last month, as
authorities prepared a second attempt to take him into custody.
Presidential Chief of Staff Chung Jin-suk said Yoon could instead be
questioned at a "third site" or at his residence and said the anti-corruption
agency and police were trying to drag him out like he was a member of a "South
American drug cartel."
However, Yoon Kab-keun, one of the president's lawyers, said Chung issued
the message without consulting them and that the legal team has no immediate
plan to make the president available for questioning by investigators.
Yoon Suk Yeol has not left his official residence in Seoul for weeks, and
the presidential security service prevented dozens of investigators from
detaining him after a nearly six-hour standoff on Jan. 3.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials and police
pledged more forceful measures to detain Yoon while they jointly investigate
whether his brief martial law declaration on Dec. 3 amounted to an attempted
rebellion.
The National Police Agency has convened multiple meetings of field
commanders in Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi province in recent days to plan their
detainment efforts, and the size of those forces fueled speculation that more
than a thousand officers could be deployed in a possible multiday operation.
The agency and police have openly warned that presidential bodyguards
obstructing the execution of the warrant could be arrested.
The anti-corruption agency and police haven't confirmed when they might
return to the presidential residence, which has been fortified with barbed wire
and rows of vehicles blocking entry paths. But Chung said he understood "D-day"
to be Wednesday, without specifying the information he had.
Anti-corruption agency and police officials met with representatives of the
presidential security service on Tuesday morning for unspecified discussions
regarding efforts to execute the detention warrant for Yoon, the agency said.
It wasn't immediately clear whether any kind of compromise was reached.
Yoon declared martial law and deployed troops around the National Assembly
on Dec. 3. It lasted only hours before lawmakers managed to get through the
blockade and voted to lift the measure.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated
assembly voted to impeach him on Dec. 14, accusing him of rebellion. His fate
now rests with the Constitutional Court, which has begun deliberating on
whether to formally remove Yoon from office or reject the charges and reinstate
him.
The Constitutional Court held its first formal hearing in the case on
Tuesday. The session lasted less than five minutes because Yoon refused to
attend, choosing to remain at his official residence while the detention
warrant for him is active. The next hearing is set for Thursday, and the court
will then proceed with the trial whether or not Yoon attends.
The country's acting leader, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, raised
concerns on Monday about potential clashes between authorities and the
presidential security service, which, despite a court warrant for Yoon's
detention, has insisted it's obligated to protect the impeached president.
The anti-corruption agency and police have "completed preparations for a
siege," Chung said.
"They are ready to tear down the walls at any moment and handcuff President
Yoon Suk Yeol, who remains isolated in his residence in Hannam-dong, and
forcibly remove him," he added, accusing investigators of trying to humiliate
the president.
"Thousands of citizens are staying up through the night in front of the
presidential residence, vowing to protect the president. If a conflict were to
break out between the police and citizens, an unimaginable tragedy could occur."
Over the past two weeks, thousands of anti-Yoon and pro-Yoon protesters have
gathered daily in competing rallies near Yoon's office in Seoul, anticipating
another detention attempt. Yoon's lawyers have claimed that images of him being
dragged out in handcuffs could trigger a huge backlash from his supporters and
spark a "civil war" in a country deeply divided over ideological and
generational lines.
In preventing Yoon's detention on Jan, 3, presidential bodyguards were
assisted by troops assigned to guard the presidential residence under the
command of the presidential security service. However, Defense Ministry
spokesperson Lee Kyung-ho stated on Tuesday that the troops will no longer
participate in efforts to block the execution of Yoon's detention warrant and
will focus solely on guarding the compound's perimeter.
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