World
Police in South Korea Blocked from Searching President’s Office
According to Yonhap News Agency, police in South Korea attempted to search President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office on Wednesday but could not enter the main building after the entrance was blocked.
The attempt to search the presidential office considerably raises the issue of whether Yoon and top police and military officers were involved in the Dec. 3 declaration of martial law, which threw the country into a constitutional crisis.
Yoon is now under criminal investigation for rebellion claims and is barred from leaving the country, but he has not been detained or questioned by officials.
According to media sources, a presidential security officer confirmed early Wednesday that a police raid on Yoon’s office was underway. Yonhap News later reported that investigators at the presidential compound have yet to enter the main building.
Yonhap said that police could not agree with the Secret Service on the seizure and search technique. The police declined to comment.
Former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, a close confidant of Yoon, and two top police officers, including the national police head, have been arrested on rebellion charges as part of the inquiry.
Kim attempted suicide with a shirt and pants late Tuesday night at a prison institution, a Justice Ministry official told parliament.
He was presently under surveillance, but his life was not in danger, according to the official. Kim has resigned and apologized for his role in briefly implementing the emergency rule in South Korea, claiming he was solely responsible.
Soon after Yoon declared martial law late at night, MPs, including several from his party, voted to urge that the president retract the order immediately, which he did hours later.
The president has not been seen in public since Saturday and was not expected to be at the presidential residence. The official house is located separately from the office.
Oh Dong-Woon, head of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and one of the institutions now examining the martial law crisis, stated that his office was “willing” to arrest Yoon if necessary.
Earlier on Wednesday, Cho Ji-ho, the national police commander, was arrested for blocking members’ access to parliament.
Calls for Yoon’s arrest increased when top military and government officials said he ordered troops to enter parliament on December 3 and prevent MPs from voting to reject martial law.
Kwak Jong-geun, head of the Army Special Warfare Command, told a parliament committee on Tuesday that Yoon had directed troops to “break down the door right now and get in there and drag out” MPs.
Military commanders have accused Yoon’s then-defence minister, Kim, of issuing the same order.
