South Korea’s SEOULAs hundreds of his followers were arrested for a violent attack on a court building on Monday, South Korea’s ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol declined to be questioned as part of an inquiry into whether he committed rebellion.
Security at the Constitutional Court, which is holding an impeachment trial to determine whether to remove Yoon from office permanently, and the Seoul Detention Center, where he is being kept as a pre-trial inmate, is being strengthened, according to authorities.
Due to his brief imposition of martial law on December 3, Yoon was last week detained, making him the first sitting South Korean president.
A court authorized a warrant on Sunday, citing concerns that the suspect would destroy evidence, and he was formally processed for imprisonment, including having his photograph taken.
After the verdict at midnight, irate supporters of Yoon stormed the Seoul Western District Court building early on Sunday, trashing property and fighting with police officers who were occasionally overwhelmed by a crowd attacking them with shattered barriers.
According to Yonhap News Agency, police intend to detain 66 individuals for assaulting police officers, trespassing, and obstructing official duties.
Acting Justice Minister Kim Seok-woo said a parliamentary judiciary committee that further criminals were still being found and that the police will pursue legal action against them.
In addition to expressing sincere regret for the unlawful violence at the court building, Acting President Choi Sang-mok asked authorities to properly execute the law in order to avoid a recurrence of Sunday’s events.
Shortly after the 3 a.m. decision on Sunday to authorize Yoon’s detention, hundreds of demonstrators, some of whom were hurling fire extinguishers into police officer lines, breached a barrier to access the court building.
In camera footage, some of them were seen wandering the hallways leading to the court’s offices while yelling the name of the judge who granted the order.
Chun Dae-yup, the chief of the National Court Administration, claimed that at least one judge’s room had been forcibly entered.
Videos of demonstrators destroying the court and yelling Yoon’s name were posted on YouTube by a number of people involved in the breach. During their broadcasts, some streamers were apprehended by law enforcement.
Following his repeated refusals to participate with the investigation, Yoon declined to appear for interrogation Monday at the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO), which is in charge of the criminal probe.
Because his arrest on Wednesday and the warrant for his detention were supported by a court in the incorrect jurisdiction and the CIO itself lacked the legal authorization to carry out the investigation, his attorneys have claimed that both actions are unlawful.
Yoon might be prosecuted with insurrection, which is one of the few crimes for which a South Korean president is not immune and is, in theory, capital. However, it has been almost 30 years since South Korea last carried out an execution.
Through his attorneys, Yoon stated that he thought Sunday’s court outburst was shocking and regrettable and urged everyone to voice their thoughts in a civil manner. Yoon also asked the police to adopt a tolerant stance in the statement, acknowledging that many people were feeling angry and unfairly treated.