South Korean investigators will seek an extension of a warrant to arrest impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, an official said on Monday, as an anti-graft agency asked police to take over efforts to execute the arrest of the embattled leader.
Reuters reports that the requests come after a failed attempt to serve the warrant on Friday following a tense stand-off with presidential security service guards who formed a human chain to block access to Yoon by the investigators.
Yoon is under criminal investigation for insurrection over his Dec. 3 martial law bid that stunned South Korea and led to the first ever arrest warrant to be issued by the court for a sitting president.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) is leading a probe, joined by police and the prosecutors’ office, into allegations that Yoon masterminded the insurrection with his imposition of martial law.
Yoon was impeached by parliament on Dec. 14 and suspended from presidential duties. The Constitutional Court is trying the case to decide whether to remove him from office permanently or reinstate him.
The CIO sent a notice to police requesting them to take over the execution of the arrest warrant, the anti-corruption agency said in a statement to reporters. A police official told Reuters they were reviewing the request.
