President Yoon Suk-yeol claimed ‘illegal arrest’ by the High-ranking Officials’ Crime Investigation Unit (Hogeumgongjikja Beomjoe Susa Cheo, Gongsoocheo) and requested a detention review by the court, but it was rejected. Accordingly, President Yoon’s detention status remains, and Gongsoocheo is expected to request an arrest warrant on the 17th.
President Yoon Seok-yeol, who was arrested by the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency on charges of leading a rebellion, completed his first day of investigation and arrived at Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang-si, Gyeonggi Province on the afternoon of the 15th. Photo by Yonhap News
Judge So Jun-seop of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 32 conducted a detention review hearing for two hours from 5 p.m. on the 16th and then dismissed President Yoon’s request. Judge So stated, “This request is deemed groundless, and therefore it is dismissed pursuant to Article 214-2, Paragraph 4 of the Criminal Procedure Act.”
Earlier, President Yoon’s legal team filed a detention review request at the Seoul Central District Court the previous day. A detention review is a system where the court examines whether the arrest by the investigative agency is lawful and releases the detainee if the arrest is deemed unlawful or unjust. President Yoon’s side argues that since Gongsoocheo does not have investigative authority over the crime of rebellion under the Gongsoocheo Act, Gongsoocheo’s investigation itself is illegal, and the arrest warrant issued by the Seoul Western District Court is also an illegal warrant violating jurisdiction under the Gongsoocheo Act.
The Gongsoocheo Act designates the exclusive jurisdiction for cases prosecuted by Gongsoocheo to the Seoul Central District Court, allowing prosecution in other courts only under special circumstances (Article 31). However, this provision regulates the jurisdiction for cases Gongsoocheo can directly prosecute. Since Gongsoocheo cannot prosecute this case and must forward the records to the prosecution for indictment, President Yoon’s side claims that jurisdiction lies with the Seoul Central District Court, which is the corresponding court for the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office that will receive the case transfer.
With President Yoon’s detention review request dismissed, Gongsoocheo is expected to request an arrest warrant as early as the 17th. Originally, the deadline for Gongsoocheo to decide whether to request an arrest warrant was 10:33 a.m. on the 17th, 48 hours after the arrest. However, the time from when the court received the investigation-related documents and evidence until their return is excluded from the ‘48-hour limit,’ so the deadline for the request is expected to be extended until the night of the 17th.
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