Seoul: Former President Yoon Suk Yeol appeared at the Seoul High Prosecutors Office on Saturday for questioning regarding insurrection charges related to his December 3 martial law declaration. However, Yoon has refused further questioning, citing the illegality of a police officer's involvement in the special counsel team conducting the inquiry.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Yoon's legal team argued that the police investigator was involved in previous legal complaints related to Yoon's alleged unlawful arrest, rendering him unsuitable to lead the questioning. Yoon's appearance marks the first time he has faced an investigative body in five months, following the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) questioning in January.
The special counsel team initiated questioning soon after Yoon's arrival at 9:56 a.m., focusing on allegations that Yoon directed the Presidential Security Service (PSS) to obstruct his arrest when the CIO attempted to execute a warrant. However, Yoon refused to participate in the afternoon session, objecting to the police officer's role in the investigation, which he claimed should be led by a prosecutor instead.
The special counsel team defended the officer's involvement, emphasizing the necessity for continuity as the officer had overseen the investigation from the outset. Despite plans to conclude questioning on obstruction charges and proceed to Yoon's actions during the martial law imposition, the probe faces potential delays due to Yoon's objections.
Yoon's presence at the prosecutors' office follows the special counsel probe's initiation two weeks prior and his impeachment 85 days earlier. During his tenure, he allegedly instructed the PSS to delete secure phone records used by military commanders following the failed martial law attempt.
Yoon had previously defied CIO summonses in December and resisted arrest in January, ultimately being detained at the presidential residence on January 15. His legal team contends that the CIO's detention warrant lacked legal justification.
Yoon arrived at the prosecutors' office in a black van, entering through the main entrance despite a denied request for a private entry through an underground parking lot. His legal team accused the special counsel of orchestrating a "political show" and infringing on Yoon's rights by publicly summoning him.
This event marks Yoon's first questioning at the prosecutors' office since his tenure as a prosecutor, where he once led a special counsel team investigating former President Park Geun-hye's influence-peddling scandal.