Yoon Resists Warrant Execution... Chief of the Corruption Investigation Office Says "Undermining the Foundation of the Rule of Law"

People Power Party Points Out 'Warrant Issued by Seoul Western District Court'
Odongwoon: "Jurisdiction under the Criminal Procedure Act Remains Unchanged"

Oh Dong-woon, Chief of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Division, stated, "Resisting the execution of an arrest warrant issued by the court through security authority is an act that shakes the foundation of the rule of law and should be strongly criticized."

On the 7th, Chief Oh responded this way to a question from Park Hee-seung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, regarding the execution of the arrest warrant for President Yoon Seok-yeol at the plenary meeting of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Regarding claims that filing the arrest warrant with the Seoul Western District Court instead of the Seoul Central District Court was illegal, he rebutted, "We followed the usual procedure," and added, "There is also talk about jurisdiction, but no matter which court it was filed with, the arrest warrant was inevitable."

Odongun, Chief of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit, is wearing a stern expression at the Legislation and Judiciary Committee plenary meeting held at the National Assembly on the 7th. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

In response to Park Jun-tae, a member of the People Power Party, asking, "The first trial jurisdiction is the Seoul Central District Court," Chief Oh emphasized, "That is true, but originally, the jurisdiction under the Criminal Procedure Act, such as the suspect's location or address, is also retained."

Article 31 of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Division Act states that the first trial of cases prosecuted by the division's prosecutors falls under the jurisdiction of the Seoul Central District Court, but considering the crime scene, location of evidence, and special circumstances of the defendant, prosecution can be made to the court with jurisdiction according to the Criminal Procedure Act.

When Park asked, "What is the reason it cannot be done at the Seoul Central District Court? There are criticisms that this is warrant shopping to seek a judgment from a progressive-leaning judge," Chief Oh responded, "This should not be interpreted as a relationship between principle and exception," and added, "While the Seoul Central District Court has exclusive jurisdiction, the jurisdiction under the Criminal Procedure Act is also maintained." He further added, "We filed it with the Seoul Western District Court, which has jurisdiction over Yongsan."

He also rebutted the controversy over the 'non-application of the Criminal Procedure Act' stated in the warrant. Regarding claims that it was illegal for the warrant judge to specify that Articles 110 and 111 of the Criminal Procedure Act, which allow refusal of search due to military or official secrets, do not apply to the search warrant for President Yoon's arrest, Chief Oh said, "This case involves a search for arrest, so it is a natural legal principle that such provisions do not apply."