When the prosecution again requested the court to extend the detention period of President Yoon Seok-yeol, who is accused of being the ringleader of the insurrection, President Yoon's legal team immediately demanded his release.
On the 25th, President Yoon's legal team issued a statement saying, "The prosecution's intention to reapply for an extension of the detention warrant period against the president is in direct violation of the wording of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office Act (HOCI Act) and adds another illegality on top of the previous illegalities."
The legal team stated, "(The court) said there is no basis in the HOCI Act for additional or supplementary investigations and rather instructed to decide immediately whether to prosecute, yet the prosecution's insistence on continuing compulsory investigations not only unlawfully restricts the suspect's human rights but also disregards the spirit of the legal adjustment of investigative authority."
President Yoon Seok-yeol, who was detained on charges of leading an insurrection, is attending the fourth impeachment trial hearing held at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 23rd. They added, "The prosecution argues by citing past cases where supplementary investigations were conducted after receiving cases from the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office, but these past cases are precisely illegal examples where the prosecution exercised investigative authority in violation of the HOCI Act and ignored the law."
They also emphasized, "At that time, the cases were voluntary investigations conducted without detention, so neither the court nor the suspect faced the same concerns as now, allowing the illegality to be tolerated," and stressed, "Having illegal precedents does not justify nullifying the law."
The legal team argued regarding the HOCI Act provisions, "It is clear that the Act means not to delay prosecution of cases investigated by the HOCI but to decide immediately," and insisted that the prosecution should not continue additional or supplementary investigations.
They further demanded, "The prosecution should revive the fundamental principle of criminal law, 'when in doubt, favor the defendant,' and immediately cancel the detention of the president," and urged, "The prosecution must respect the court's decision and release the president immediately."
Earlier, the Seoul Central District Court denied the prosecution's request to extend President Yoon's detention period until the 6th of next month. The court reasoned that there is insufficient legal basis or validity for the prosecution to conduct active and comprehensive compulsory investigations such as extending the detention period for cases transferred from the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office.
In response, the prosecution reapplied for the detention extension in the early morning of the same day, about four hours after the denial decision.
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