South Korea’s political crisis took a dramatic turn on Friday when investigators were forced to abandon an attempt to arrest the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, over his attempt last month to impose martial law after a tense standoff with his security forces.
The confrontation unfolded on a freezing winter’s day in Seoul, as an estimated 1,200 Yoon supporters gathered outside Yoon’s official residence while as many as 150 police and other officials attempted to execute an arrest warrant – the first for a sitting South Korean president over allegations his martial law declaration in December amounted to an insurrection.
But hours after they entered the presidential compound in Seoul, anti-corruption officials said they were halting efforts to detain Yoon.
Local media reports said anti-corruption officials – who are leading a joint team of police and prosecutors – entered the compound to find themselves blocked by troops under the control of the presidential security service.
“Regarding the execution of the arrest warrant today, it was determined that the execution was effectively impossible due to the ongoing standoff,” the Corruption Investigation Office said in a statement. “Concern for the safety of personnel on-site led to the decision.”
The investigators’ office said it would discuss further action but did not immediately say whether it would make another attempt to detain Yoon. The warrant for his detention will expire on Monday.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is set to arrive in South Korea the same day for talks between the two allies.
The Yonhap news agency said the team comprised 30 people from the anti-corruption office and 120 police, 70 of whom were initially waiting outside the residence compound.
Having managed to find a way past the troops, officials were confronted by other security service staff.
The warrant was issued on Tuesday after Yoon again ignored a court order to submit himself for questioning over his short-lived declaration of martial law, for which he was impeached in mid-December.
Yoon’s lawyers describing the attempt to detain him as “illegal and invalid”, claiming the warrant could not be enforced at the presidential residence due to a law preventing locations potentially linked to military secrets from being searched without the consent of the person in charge – in this case Yoon.
Seok Dong-hyeon, one of the lawyers, said the anti-corruption agency’s efforts showed an “outrageous discard for the law”.
What happens next is unclear. The anti-corruption office could attempt another arrest, seek a warrant extension, or pursue a pre-trial detention warrant that would require less immediate physical enforcement. Police have meanwhile filed obstruction of justice charges against the head and deputy head of the presidential security service, who have been summoned for questioning.
If he is eventually detained, Yoon, would become South Korea’s first sitting president to be arrested and be held at the Seoul Detention Centre while the anti-corruption agency had 48 hours to investigate him and either request a warrant for his formal arrest or release him.
Yoon’s defence minister, police chief and several top military commanders have already been arrested over their roles in the martial law declaration.
He declared martial law on 3 December in an attempt to root out what he described as “anti-state, pro-North Korean” forces – a reference to opposition MPs in the national assembly – without providing any evidence for those claims.
He was forced to lift the order six hours later after lawmakers forced their way past troops into the parliament building to vote it down.
While the country’s constitutional court decides whether to uphold the impeachment vote – a move that would trigger an election for a new president – Yoon appears ready to continue defying anti-corruption officials over his martial law edict.
The criminal allegations against Yoon, an ultra conservative whose two and a half years in office have been marred by scandal and policy gridlock, are serious.
Insurrection is one of the few crimes from which South Korean presidents do not have immunity, and comes with penalties that can include life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
The raid took place amid a huge security presence. The broadcaster YTN reported that 2,800 police had been mobilised in the area, along with 135 police buses that have been positioned to create a barrier, as Yoon’s supporters maintained a round-the-clock vigil outside the residence.
A makeshift stage hosted impassioned speeches, with one woman appearing to break down in tears when describing Yoon’s situation. Another declared: “Ladies and gentlemen, President Yoon is truly remarkable... I love President Yoon Suk Yeol”.
Supporters, mostly elderly though with some younger faces present, gathered around tables offering tea and instant noodles. Many in the crowd insisted Yoon’s martial law declaration had been constitutional and justified.
Pyeong In-su, 74, said the police had to be stopped by “patriotic citizens” – a term Yoon has used to describe people standing guard near his residence.
Holding a US-South Korea flag with the words “Let’s go together” written on it in English and Korean, he said he hoped Donald Trump would come to Yoon’s aid after he becomes president later this month. “I hope after Trump’s inauguration he can use his influence to help our country get back on the right track,” he explained.
Yoon, who has not left his residence since his impeachment, has told supporters he will fight until the end. “I am watching on YouTube live all the hard work you are doing,” he wrote late on Wednesday. Yoon has refused to retract his claims opposition MPs were pro-North Korean and also aired unsupported allegations of election tampering.
South Korea’s traditionally conservative media have however taken a harsh stance against Yoon. The influential Chosun Ilbo’s editorial condemned his behaviour as “deeply inappropriate for a president with a prosecutor background”.
Dong-A Ilbo delivered a scathing critique, describing the situation as “beyond embarrassing and reaching a deplorable level”. It criticised Yoon for continuing to rely on extreme supporters rather than taking responsibility for what it called “a month that has left the country in tatters”.
