South Korea’s impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly causing an insurrection. He agreed to be arrested, saying he wanted to avoid violence, even though he believes the investigation is illegal.
This is a historic moment as Yoon is the first sitting president to be arrested in South Korea, even though the country has put other presidents in jail after they left office. The arrest marks another dramatic turn for one of Asia’s strongest democracies.
Since December 3, when lawmakers removed him from power after he briefly declared martial law, Yoon had been staying in his home on a hillside. He was protected by his personal security team, who had stopped an earlier attempt to arrest him.
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More than 3,000 police officers came to arrest Yoon early Wednesday morning. In response, Yoon decided to cooperate rather than resist. “I decided to respond to the CIO’s investigation – despite it being an illegal investigation – to prevent unsavoury bloodshed,” Yoon said in a statement. The CIO (Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials) is the agency leading the investigation.
Later, people saw Yoon leave his house in a group of cars and arrive at the CIO offices. The authorities now have 48 hours to question Yoon. After that, they must either get permission to keep him for up to 20 more days or let him go.
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