A special counsel team wrapped up its questioning of former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday over insurrection charges tied to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration but plans to summon him again for another round of investigation.
The questioning of Yoon ended shortly before 10 p.m., and the former president was reviewing his interrogation record before being allowed to return home, the special counsel team said.
Yoon appeared for questioning at the Seoul High Prosecutors Office nearly half a day before, with questioning starting shortly afterward 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.
The probe was, however, suspended midway after lunch, when Yoon refused to enter the questioning chamber for the afternoon session, protesting that a police officer whom he had filed a complaint against was among the investigators.
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.
After a three-hour suspension, the questioning resumed with Yoon's compliance as it moved on to separate charges led by other members of the special counsel, including those related to a Cabinet meeting he convened in the hours leading up to the short-lived martial law imposition.
A senior prosecutor on the investigation team said it would be "physically difficult" to complete the investigation into Yoon within the day, and that the questioning may not continue past midnight.
The special counsel team plans to summon him again soon for questioning on the remaining charges, the prosecutor noted. The team plans to coordinate the schedule with Yoon's side after reviewing the results of Saturday's questioning.
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)
