South Korea: Police, presidential security locked in standoff over attempt to raid presidential office

Seoul, April 16: South Korean Police were locked in a five-hour standoff with presidential security officials on Wednesday as they attempted to raid the presidential office over an investigation into allegations that impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol obstructed the execution of a detention warrant early this year.

The police's special investigation team presented a warrant to search the presidential office's secure phone server, and the Presidential Security Service (PSS) office and residence, all in the central Seoul district of Yongsan, at 10:13 a.m., according to officials.

However, police had yet to enter the buildings as of 3 p.m., as the PSS refused to cooperate with the raid.

Acting PSS chief Kim Seong-hoon is accused of obstructing investigators' attempts to detain Yoon at the presidential residence in January. Last month, a Seoul court turned down the prosecution's request for warrants to arrest Kim and Lee Kwang-woo, chief of the PSS' bodyguard division, Yonhap news agency reported.

Police officials said the presidential office's surveillance cameras are also subject to the raid in connection with former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min's insurrection charges.

Earlier on April 14, Yoon Suk Yeol defended himself during his first criminal trial on insurrection charges, saying his attempt to impose martial law in December did not amount to an insurrection.

Yoon, who dramatically rose from a top prosecutor to the presidency in about three years, became the nation's second President to be formally removed from office, with his surprise martial law bid rattling the nation for months and deepening political polarisation.

With the ruling, Yoon, 64, follows in the footsteps of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who was ousted in 2017 when the Constitutional Court upheld her impeachment over a corruption scandal.

Before taking the nation's highest office, Yoon began his career as a prosecutor in 1994, rising through the ranks to lead an investigation team into Park's corruption scandal that ultimately led to her ouster and subsequent imprisonment.

In 2019, he was appointed as the nation's top prosecutor under then South Korean President Moon Jae-in but clashed with the administration as he oversaw investigations into family members of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk.

Amid mounting pressure from the Moon administration, Yoon stepped down from his post in 2021, only to enter politics shortly after and win the presidential election in 2022 as the candidate for the conservative People Power Party.

Yoon's term was riddled with conflict, with an uncooperative National Assembly dominated by the main Opposition Democratic Party (DP). Yoon exercised his presidential veto power against 25 Bills passed by the National Assembly.

Tensions with the DP appeared to reach an extreme in early December as the main Opposition introduced motions to impeach the country's top auditor and a senior prosecutor, with Yoon declaring martial law on December 3, which ultimately led to his downfall.

Reader Comments

J

James K.

This is getting ridiculous. How can police be blocked from doing their job by presidential security? The rule of law should apply to everyone equally. 😠

S

Soo-min L.

As a Korean citizen, I'm deeply concerned about these events. We've seen this movie before with Park Geun-hye. History shouldn't repeat itself like this.

M

Min-ji P.

The article presents the facts well, but I wish there was more context about why the police suspect the surveillance cameras are relevant to Lee Sang-min's case. That part feels a bit vague.

T

Thomas R.

Five hour standoff? That's some serious tension. Makes me wonder what they're trying to protect in those servers 🤔

A

A-Young K.

The political drama in South Korea never ends... First Park, now Yoon. Maybe we need to rethink how we select our leaders. This is exhausting for the nation.

D

Daniel H.

While I don't support Yoon's actions, I think we should be careful about rushing to judgment. The legal process needs to play out properly - that's what separates democracies from dictatorships.

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.