Call to extend detention


Investigators probing President Yoon Suk-yeol for alleged insurrection asked a Seoul court yesterday to extend his detention as the embattled leader again refused to be questioned.

On Wednesday, Yoon became the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested, in a criminal probe related to his short-lived declaration of martial law in early December.

He is being held at the Seoul Detention Centre.

In order to hold Yoon in custody for longer, investigators at the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) need a court to approve a detention warrant for up to 20 days.

A CIO official told a briefing yesterday that investigators had made the request due to “the gravity of the crime”.

Seoul Western District Court will review the request today afternoon, Yonhap News Agency reported.

In a statement disseminated by his lawyer, Yoon said the jail cell where he is being held is “a little uncomfortable” but that he is doing well.

He also thanked his supporters, hundreds of whom gathered outside the prison in chilly conditions, saying: “I am grateful for the people’s burning patriotism.”

Yoon has stonewalled efforts by the CIO to interrogate him while his party has capitalised on political polarisation to improve its approval ratings since his arrest, polling showed.

“He has fully stated his basic position on the first day (of the arrest), and we believe there is no reason or need to answer the Q&A style back and forth,” Yoon’s lawyer, Seok Dong-hyeon, said in a statement.

The suspended president’s legal team has denied Yoon masterminded an insurrection, a crime in South Korea punishable by life imprisonment or even, technically, the death penalty.

The Seoul Central District Court struck down a challenge on Thursday from Yoon’s lawyers over the legality of his arrest.

South Korea is grappling with its worst political crisis in decades, sparked by Yoon’s attempt to impose martial law on Dec 3 that stunned the nation and was swiftly voted down by parliament.

Yoon was impeached on Dec 14 and he faces a Constitutional Court trial that started this week to decide whether to permanently suspend his powers or return him to office. — Reuters

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