South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol ignored a summons for questioning from the Joint Investigation Team for the second time on Wednesday, but requesting an arrest warrant is still a “distant” step.
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The temporarily suspended President of the Republic did not appear at the office of the Office for the Investigation of Corrupt Practices of Senior Officials (CIO), where he was summoned as part of a joint investigation into the circumstances of the short-term martial law declared in the country on December 3.
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In the investigation team, Yun Seok Yeol was expected at 10.00. As of 6 p.m., investigators had not received any communications from the suspended president and confirmed that he ignored a second request for questioning. He also has yet to file a notice to appoint a lawyer.
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Earlier, South Korean police joined forces with the High Official Corrupt Practices Investigation Office and the Ministry of Defense to conduct a joint investigation into allegations of sedition, abuse of power by imposing martial law, and sending troops to Parliament to allegedly prevent deputies from repealing the martial law decree. The prosecutor’s office launched a parallel investigation into the case, but then transferred authority to a joint investigation team.
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President’s lawyer Seok Dong-hyun previously said that Yoon Seok-yeol is giving “priority” to his impeachment proceedings at the Constitutional Court and plans to issue a statement on his position on the trial after December 25.
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The investigative team is expected to decide on Thursday on further possible measures, such as issuing a subpoena for a third time or obtaining an arrest warrant for the president. The investigation also said that the impeachment trial would not have a “decisive” impact on the anti-corruption body’s next steps. At the same time, obtaining an arrest warrant for Yoon Seok Yeol was called a “distant” step.
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“An arrest warrant seems like a long shot. There are a lot of things that need to be considered,” the investigation said.
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Earlier, the South Korean parliament supported the impeachment of President Yoon Seok-yeol; 204 deputies voted for the president’s removal from office, 85 were against. Three abstained, eight ballots were invalid. All 300 members of the South Korean parliament voted.
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In connection with the approval of impeachment by the parliament, the powers of Yoon Seok Yeol are temporarily suspended, and the Constitutional Court will consider the issue of removing the president from office. The court will have 180 days to do this, and Prime Minister Han Duk-soo will become the acting head of state until the final verdict is made.
