Special Prosecutor Presents 362-Page Opinion and 160 Slides of Evidence
Judge Jeong Jaeuk, Who Issued Warrants for Lee Sangmin and Kim Keonhee, Presides
The court hearing that will determine whether former Prime Minister Han Ducksoo, who faces charges of abetting rebellion and perjury, will be detained, concluded on August 27.
Judge Jeong Jaeuk, who is in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, held a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant review) for former Prime Minister Han starting at 1:30 p.m. on this day, reviewing the necessity of his detention and investigation. Including recesses, the hearing lasted for about three hours and 25 minutes and ended at approximately 4:55 p.m.
Former Prime Minister Han Ducksoo, who is accused of aiding and abetting former President Yoon Sukyeol's acts of rebellion, is leaving the Seoul Central District Court building in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 27th to move to the waiting area at Seoul Detention Center after completing the pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant review). Photo by Yonhap News
The special prosecutor's team presented a 54-page arrest warrant request, a 362-page opinion statement, 160 slides of PowerPoint materials, and closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage during the hearing, making a comprehensive case for the charges and the need for detention. Former Prime Minister Han reportedly denied most of the charges except those related to perjury.
Previously, on August 24, Special Prosecutor Cho Eunseok’s team requested an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Han on charges of aiding and abetting the ringleader of the rebellion, perjury, falsification of official documents, damage to public records, violation of the Presidential Records Management Act, and use of false official documents. As the “second-in-command of state affairs” in his role as Prime Minister, he is accused of failing to prevent and aiding former President Yoon Sukyeol’s illegal proclamation of emergency martial law last year.
The special prosecutor’s team argues that the Prime Minister has a duty to check the President’s abuse of power, citing, among other things, the statement by former Legislation Minister Yoo Jin-oh-who drafted the initial Constitution-that the Prime Minister should be appointed with the approval of the National Assembly to prevent the President’s unilateral actions. They also believe that former Prime Minister Han was preoccupied with merely meeting the quorum of 11 cabinet members required to convene a cabinet meeting, and neglected to ensure that a proper “cabinet review” took place.
Former Prime Minister Han is also accused of drafting and then destroying a subsequent proclamation to remedy legal defects in the initial martial law declaration. After martial law was declared, on December 5 of last year, he reportedly signed a false martial law proclamation document prepared by former Presidential Secretary Kang Uigu alongside former Defense Minister Kim Yonghyun, and then instructed its destruction, stating, “If it becomes known that the document was created after the fact, it could trigger another controversy.”
Former Prime Minister Han previously testified during the impeachment trial of former President Yoon that “I really do not remember when or how I received the martial law proclamation.” However, during questioning on August 19, he reportedly reversed his statement, saying, “I received the proclamation from former President Yoon.”
The results of the detention review for former Prime Minister Han are expected to be announced as early as tonight. If the court issues an arrest warrant, the special prosecutor’s team will likely gain momentum in applying charges of participating in or abetting rebellion to the remaining cabinet members. On the other hand, if the warrant is denied, there may be criticism that the charges were excessively applied.
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