South Korea’s Yoon Suk Yeol has made history as the Country’s first sitting president to be arrested, ending a weeks-long stalemate between investigators and his private security.
The arrest came after the 64-year-old president’s attempt to impose martial law failed, launching the country into uncertainty.
Despite the leadership crisis, Yoon Suk Yeol remains the president in a technical sense.
Investigators faced significant challenges in securing his arrest. They had to use fire fighting equipment like wire cutters and ladders to access the president’s residence in what looked like a scene from a Hollywood movie.
BREAKING: South Korean police have arrested President Yoon
In a statement, Yoon said he agreed to appear before the Country’s Corruption Investigation Office(CIO) to avoid “bloodshed.”
The Wednesday dawn intense operation, carried out by 1000 officers, was the second time the officers tried to bring him into custody.
“I decided to appear before the CIO, even though it is an illegal investigation, in order to prevent any unsavoury bloodshed,” he said.
The escalation occurred because Yoon ignored summons issued previously
South Korea’s President Yoon has been arrested following his unsuccessful attempt to impose martial law. – He becomes the country’s first sitting president to be arrested.
In a three-minute-video to his supporters, Yoon said he would comply with the investigators though he did not agree with them. He also labelled the arrest warrant “illegal.”
The country appears divided on the matter, as his supporters think the arrest is politically motivated, others see it as a step toward justice.
Yoon said that he witnessed the investigators breach the barricade set up by the Presidential Security Service (PSS) personnel in an attempt to block his arrest.
This was the second time the investigators tried to detain him, with the first attempt failing on 3 January.
Yoon is expected to remain in custody after questioning, but his detention will depend on whether the courts will issue a detention warrant within 48 hours of his arrest.
For now, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok has taken over as acting president.
