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More forces are expected to join the operation to take Yoon Suk Yeol in for questioning after the last attempt was foiled by his large security team.
Jan. 14, 2025Updated 4:13 p.m. ET
Criminal investigators armed with a court-issued warrant began a second, much-anticipated operation early Wednesday to detain the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, for questioning in connection with insurrection charges that stem from his short-lived imposition of martial law last month.
Police buses started massing before dawn outside the hilltop presidential compound where Mr. Yoon has been holed up since he was impeached — and suspended from office — by the National Assembly on Dec. 14. He was the first South Korean leader to place his country under military rule since the country began democratizing in the late 1980s.
When the investigators first visited his residence to serve a detention warrant on Jan. 3, they were outnumbered by presidential security agents. They were met by barricades of cars, bodyguards and soldiers and had to beat an embarrassing retreat after a standoff that lasted five and a half hours.
On Wednesday morning, with Mr. Yoon’s lawyers, lawmakers from his party and personnel from the presidential security service standing outside the compound gates, it appeared that he and his supporters were gearing up to resist the renewed effort for his detention.
Live footage of the street leading up to his compound in the morning showed a tense standoff in below-freezing temperatures, with some shoving and physical struggles at one point.
The investigators have regrouped since their initial failed attempt to detain Mr. Yoon, renewing their warrant and saying they would bring in more police officers the next time they visited his residence. Police officials said they planned to deploy 1,000 officers, including units specializing in targeting drug and organized crime gangs, and vowed to arrest any people who obstructed their way.
