Yoon requests change in special counsel questioning schedule set for Monday
Lawyers representing former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Sunday requested a schedule change for his next summons by the special counsel team, which has been investigating insurrection charges tied to his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law.
The special counsel had notified Yoon to appear for a second round of questioning on Monday, just a day after a marathon session held over the weekend.
"It is an extremely tight schedule that does not take into account the suspect's health and his right to prepare for ongoing trials," Yoon's legal team said in a statement. "We submitted a written request to the special counsel this afternoon, seeking to reschedule the appearance."
After a 15-hour session, Yoon left the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul early Sunday, following questioning over allegations that he ordered the Presidential Security Service to block his arrest when investigators attempted to execute a warrant in January.
The special counsel team has notified Yoon to appear for questioning again on Monday. It plans to summon him for questioning indefinitely until it wraps up the investigation.
Special prosecutors questioned Yoon for about five hours during the marathon session, which was partially suspended due to objections from Yoon's lawyers over the presence of a police investigator whom they claimed was unfit to question the former president.
Yoon was questioned about a Cabinet meeting that took place just before his martial law declaration, his alleged attempt to obstruct the National Assembly from passing a resolution to lift martial law, and treason charges.
Yoon's lawyers told reporters after the session that the former president responded to the questions to the best of his knowledge.
The special counsel team plans to resume questioning Yoon at 9 a.m. Monday over allegations he ordered officials to delete records of secure phones used by those allegedly involved in martial law operations.
Yoon's legal team said it would hold talks with the special counsel over scheduling the next session.
"(He) will obviously respond to a summons that follows due process," Song Jin-ho, one of Yoon's lawyers, told reporters.
The questioning took place two weeks after the special counsel probe was launched and 85 days after he was removed from office.
It marked the ousted president's first appearance before an investigative body in about five months, following his arrest and questioning by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in January.
The CIO attempted to detain him in early January but failed due to a prolonged standoff with presidential security personnel. He ended up being detained on Jan. 15, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested.
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Korea Herald
7 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Yoon requests change in special counsel questioning schedule set for Monday
Lawyers representing former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Sunday requested a schedule change for his next summons by the special counsel team, which has been investigating insurrection charges tied to his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law. The special counsel had notified Yoon to appear for a second round of questioning on Monday, just a day after a marathon session held over the weekend. "It is an extremely tight schedule that does not take into account the suspect's health and his right to prepare for ongoing trials," Yoon's legal team said in a statement. "We submitted a written request to the special counsel this afternoon, seeking to reschedule the appearance." After a 15-hour session, Yoon left the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul early Sunday, following questioning over allegations that he ordered the Presidential Security Service to block his arrest when investigators attempted to execute a warrant in January. The special counsel team has notified Yoon to appear for questioning again on Monday. It plans to summon him for questioning indefinitely until it wraps up the investigation. Special prosecutors questioned Yoon for about five hours during the marathon session, which was partially suspended due to objections from Yoon's lawyers over the presence of a police investigator whom they claimed was unfit to question the former president. Yoon was questioned about a Cabinet meeting that took place just before his martial law declaration, his alleged attempt to obstruct the National Assembly from passing a resolution to lift martial law, and treason charges. Yoon's lawyers told reporters after the session that the former president responded to the questions to the best of his knowledge. The special counsel team plans to resume questioning Yoon at 9 a.m. Monday over allegations he ordered officials to delete records of secure phones used by those allegedly involved in martial law operations. Yoon's legal team said it would hold talks with the special counsel over scheduling the next session. "(He) will obviously respond to a summons that follows due process," Song Jin-ho, one of Yoon's lawyers, told reporters. The questioning took place two weeks after the special counsel probe was launched and 85 days after he was removed from office. It marked the ousted president's first appearance before an investigative body in about five months, following his arrest and questioning by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in January. The CIO attempted to detain him in early January but failed due to a prolonged standoff with presidential security personnel. He ended up being detained on Jan. 15, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested.
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Ex-President Yoon defies further questioning by special counsel, claims illegality of police involvement
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol appeared for questioning Saturday over insurrection charges tied to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration but is refusing to undergo further questioning, claiming the illegality of a police member of the special counsel team leading the questioning process. Yoon's legal team argued that the police investigator in question was among the officials subject to legal complaints in connection with Yoon's "unlawful" arrest in the past, claiming he was unfit to question the former president. Shortly after Yoon arrived at the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul at 9:56 a.m., the special counsel team began questioning Yoon on allegations that he ordered the Presidential Security Service to physically block his arrest when the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials attempted to execute a warrant in January. However, the team said Yoon refused to sit down for the afternoon session, taking issue with the fact that the questioning was led by a police official, who had handled the insurrection probe prior to the launch of the special counsel investigation, instead of a prosecutor. "The officer in charge has overseen this investigation from the beginning and knows the details better than anyone else," the special counsel team said, stressing it was necessary for investigative consistency. The special counsel initially planned to wrap up the questioning on charges of obstruction of arrest in the afternoon and move on to investigate him about a Cabinet meeting he convened in the hours leading up to the short-lived martial law imposition. The probe could face further delays, or even suspension, if Yoon's legal team continues to object to police participation. The questioning comes two weeks after the special counsel probe was launched and just 85 days after his impeachment. This marks the ousted president's first appearance before an investigative body in about five months, following his arrest and questioning by CIO in January. In addition to his insurrection charges in connection with the failed martial law bid, Yoon is accused of ordering the PSS to physically block his arrest when the CIO attempted to execute a warrant in January, and directing the PSS to delete records from secure phones used by military commanders shortly after his failed attempt to impose martial law. Following the martial law bid, Yoon was summoned by the CIO for questioning three times in December but refused to comply. The CIO attempted to detain him in early January but failed due to a prolonged standoff with presidential security personnel. He ended up being detained on Jan. 15 at the presidential residence in central Seoul, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested. Yoon's lawyer argued that Yoon defied the summonses because the detention warrant filed by the CIO failed to meet legal grounds. Earlier in the day, Yoon arrived at the prosecutors' office through the main entrance in a black van and entered the building without answering reporters' questions. Earlier, Yoon's team had requested that he be allowed to enter privately through the underground parking lot, but the request was denied. Shortly after his arrival, Yoon's legal team issued a statement strongly condemning the special counsel team, accusing it of staging a "political show" pertaining to the summoning of the former president. "(The special counsel team) must not unilaterally notify the suspect or publicly expose the suspect's appearance in a way that infringes on their rights," it said. It marked the first time Yoon was questioned inside the prosecutors' office where he once served as a prosecutor and where he himself led a special counsel team investigating former President Park Geun-hye's influence-peddling scandal. (Yonhap)
