South Korean court orders impeached Yoon released from custody after accepting request to cancel arrest

Seoul: A South Korean court ordered impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol to be released from custody on Friday after accepting his request to cancel his arrest over his short-lived imposition of martial law.

Yoon has been held at a detention centre in Uiwang, just south of Seoul, since investigators detained him and brought him there on January 15 on charges of inciting an insurrection through his December 3 declaration of martial law.

With his release, Yoon will be able to stand trial without physical detention.

The Seoul Central District Court announced its decision about a month after Yoon’s legal team filed the cancellation request claiming the prosecution’s indictment of him on January 26 was illegal as it came a day after his detention period had expired.

Detained suspects can be held longer if indicted within their detention period.

Prosecutors countered that the indictment took place within the set period, as the criminal procedure code dictates it should be counted in days, not in minutes and hours, as claimed by Yoon’s legal team.

In siding with Yoon, the court explained that the detention period should be calculated in hours and his indictment took place outside the period, Yonhap news agency reported.

Yoon’s legal team had also argued the President’s declaration of martial law did not constitute an insurrection and that he presented no risks of destroying evidence.

Prosecutors insisted the concerns about destroying evidence remained large and that he could frequently meet key figures and aides involved in the martial law bid in the event his trial takes place without physical detention.

If Yoon, who was elected in May 2022 for a single, five-year term, is formally removed from office, a snap election will be held within 60 days. However, if the impeachment is dismissed, Yoon will immediately resume his duties.

IANS