With Yoon arrest attempt imminent, CIO to push ahead despite PSS resistance
Published: 14 Jan. 2025, 18:03
Updated: 14 Jan. 2025, 22:40
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- CHO JUNG-WOO
- [email protected]
Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI
![A security officer patrols the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/01/14/6c51977a-ea50-4344-822a-73fead7618f4.jpg)
A security officer patrols the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) said Tuesday its meeting with the police and the Presidential Security Service (PSS) held earlier in the day would “not affect the plan” to execute a warrant to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, which may take place as early as Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, a CIO official said the parties agreed on the warrant’s execution to proceed peacefully, though no specific conclusions were reached. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added the plan was not undergoing a “full revision,” suggesting the warrant’s execution remained imminent.
The meeting was reportedly convened at the police’s request.
Later in the day, the police held a separate meeting with senior officers from Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon, to enter the fortified presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul. The warrant could be executed as early as 5 a.m. Wednesday, according to a report by the JoongAng Ilbo, the Korea JoongAng Daily's affiliate.
Discussions reportedly focused on how to bypass PSS agents, search the residence and arrest Yoon.
![Security officers patrol near the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/01/14/0599db2d-7fc2-4550-816d-e9822104f184.jpg)
Security officers patrol near the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]
Following the three-way meeting, the PSS issued a statement saying it would respond to what it called the “illegal warrant execution” in accordance with its security protocols.
In the statement, the PSS noted that access to the presidential residence designated a “national security facility” and a “military facility protection zone,” requires approval from an authorized individual. It added that entering the area without prior authorization is “unlawful.”
The statement came in response to the CIO and the police's request for the PSS's cooperation for a "peaceful" execution during the meeting earlier in the day.
The security service added that the agencies thoroughly discussed ways to prevent physical clashes during the execution and vowed to “exert every effort to avoid confrontations during the warrant’s execution."
While the PSS is expected to block investigators during the second arrest attempt, military units will not be dispatched this time.
The Defense Ministry on Tuesday said that the security brigade will focus solely on securing the surrounding area as designated and will not be involved in the attempt to execute the arrest warrant.
The ministry said that it delivered its stance to the PSS, to which the security service agreed.
The 55th Security Brigade from the Capital Defense Command, which is responsible for guarding the area surrounding the presidential residence, approved the entrance of personnel from the CIO, police and the Defense Ministry into the residence, according to the anticorruption office on Tuesday afternoon.
![Protesters in their tents demand the arrest of President Yoon Suk Yeol near the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/01/14/02d17f4d-ab7c-4cc0-ba93-8b86cbd64d84.jpg)
Protesters in their tents demand the arrest of President Yoon Suk Yeol near the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, central Seoul, on Jan. 14. [NEWS1]
Meanwhile, the police’s National Office of Investigation (NOI) reportedly ordered investigators from southern and northern Gyeonggi, Seoul and Incheon, to prepare for a second attempt to execute the warrant. The police last week sent an official request to metropolitan police investigators for their deployment to the second arrest attempt, which involved dispatching around 1,000 officers.
The NOI also secured an arrest warrant for PSS Deputy Chief Kim Seong-hoon, who is also acting chief of the security service. A court issued the warrant for Kim on Monday.
Earlier in the day, presidential chief of staff Chung Jin-suk appealed for Yoon’s right to defend himself, suggesting alternatives such as conducting the investigation at a third-party location or through a visit, rather than through detention. However, Yoon’s legal team said Chung made this statement without prior discussion.
The CIO said it had not received any formal request regarding Chung’s proposal and reiterated that it has been “consistently requesting Yoon’s appearance” and is now pursuing legal measures in response to his repeated refusals to comply.
BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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