By Hyunsu Yim and Ju-min Park
SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean authorities arrested impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday over insurrection accusations related to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration, investigators said.
Yoon’s presidential motorcade left the hillside residence where he has been holed up for weeks behind barbed wire barriers and a small army of personal security, and later arrived at the offices of the anti-corruption agency heading the probe.
In a statement, Yoon said he submitted himself for questioning to avoid any violence after more than 3,000 police officers marched on his residence to arrest him from the early hours on Wednesday.
“When I saw them break into the security area using firefighting equipment today, I decided to respond to the CIO’s investigation – despite it being an illegal investigation – to prevent unsavoury bloodshed,” Yoon said in a statement.
Yoon’s lawyers have argued attempts to detain Yoon are illegal and are designed to publicly humiliate him. The warrant investigators secured for his arrest is the first ever issued against an incumbent South Korean president.
As local news broadcasters reported that Yoon’s detention may come soon, some minor scuffles broke out between tearful pro-Yoon protesters and police near the residence, according to a Reuters witness at the scene.
Yoon’s declaration of martial law stunned South Koreans and plunged one of Asia’s most vibrant democracies into an unprecedented period of political turmoil. Lawmakers voted to impeach him and remove him from duties on Dec. 14.
Separately, the Constitutional Court is deliberating over to uphold that impeachment and permanently remove him from office.
(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim, Joyce Lee, Ju-min Park and Cynthia KimWriting by John GeddieEditing by Ed Davies, Sandra Maler and Michael Perry)
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