Yoon's 'Attendance Decision' Becomes Investigation Turning Point... Possibility of Arrest Warrant

Refusal to Cooperate with the Corruption Investigation Office Tomorrow
3rd Summons and Arrest Warrants Pending
Kim Yong-hyun and Yeo In-hyeong Arrested One After Another
Yoon's Forced Investigation Likely Difficult to Delay

The question of whether President Yoon Seok-yeol, who is accused of being the ringleader of an insurrection, will appear at the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (HOCI) on the 25th is expected to become a turning point in the ongoing investigation. Since key figures involved in the December 3 emergency martial law incident have been successively arrested, it is analyzed that the HOCI is approaching a time for a 'decision.'

Barricades have been erected in front of the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the 24th, as President Yoon Suk-yeol refuses to accept the summons from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and the impeachment trial documents from the Constitutional Court. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

The joint investigation headquarters, composed of the HOCI, the National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency, and the Ministry of National Defense Investigation Headquarters, announced on the 23rd that President Yoon refused to accept the second summons letter sent by mail. The HOCI maintains a stance of waiting until the last moment for President Yoon's appearance, but currently considers the possibility low.

Seok Dong-hyun, a lawyer involved in forming President Yoon's defense team, said, "If the emergency martial law is the main subject of the investigation, the president would have to discuss the overall state of governmental disorder, but it is questionable whether the investigative agencies are prepared for that," adding, "I believe the impeachment trial procedure should take precedence." Since President Yoon's side plans to form separate defense teams for the impeachment trial and the investigation, it is expected that they will first organize the impeachment trial defense team and respond to the investigation later.

The HOCI also sent a first summons letter on the 16th, requesting President Yoon to appear for questioning on the 18th, but he did not respond or appear. If President Yoon does not appear on the 25th either, the HOCI will face a choice between issuing a third summons or requesting an arrest warrant. Especially as key figures such as former Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun and former Commander of the Defense Counterintelligence Command Yeo In-hyung have been successively arrested by the prosecution and are expected to be indicted soon, there is speculation that it will be difficult to delay a forced investigation of President Yoon any longer.

In the legal community, it is generally considered that requesting an arrest warrant for President Yoon is possible in principle. Professor Han Sang-hee of Konkuk University Law School said, "The crime of insurrection does not fall under immunity from prosecution, so the president is subject to the same penalties and treatment as ordinary citizens," adding, "If caught in the act, urgent arrest is possible, as well as forced investigation and search and seizure."

However, even if an arrest warrant is issued, there is a possibility of conflict with the Presidential Security Service during its execution. In fact, when the police attempted to search the presidential office on the 11th, they only received some materials after a confrontation with the Security Service. The Criminal Procedure Act stipulates that places requiring military or official secrecy cannot be searched or seized without the consent of the person in charge. Although there are no separate restrictions on executing an arrest warrant, the Security Service may use physical force to block entry to the presidential residence for security reasons. In such a case, it is expected to affect subsequent investigations or impeachment trial procedures, as the president, a lawyer by training, would have refused the legitimate law enforcement of public authority.