Seoul: The acting chief of the Presidential Security Service (PSS) offered to resign Tuesday after a majority of staff reportedly signed a petition demanding his departure for allegedly obstructing investigators' efforts to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol earlier this year, according to sources. Kim Seong-hoon, who has been leading the organization in an acting capacity, announced his intention to step down by the end of the month during an emergency meeting with PSS officials, the sources said.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim had remained in the post even after Yoon was officially removed from office earlier this month by the Constitutional Court over his short-lived martial law declaration in December. Lee Kwang-woo, head of the agency's bodyguard division who has also come under pressure to resign, has reportedly taken a leave of absence through April 25.
The two officials are under police investigation for allegedly blocking the execution of an arrest warrant for Yoon in January and ordering the deletion of communication records from secure phones used by Yoon and top military commanders during his brief imposition of martial law. Kim's resignation follows the circulation of a petition reportedly signed by more than half of the PSS' roughly 700 employees. The petition allegedly accused Kim and Lee of abusing the former president's trust to run the security agency as a private entity and jeopardizing the organization by engaging in illegal activities, including abuse of power.