President will not be participating in a second round of questioning, his lawyer said on Thursday, a day after he was arrested and detained over his failed martial law bid in December.
“President Yoon is not well and fully explained his position yesterday so there is nothing more to be interrogated about,” one of his lawyers, Yoon Kab-keun, told Yonhap news agency.
His questioning was due to resume at 2 p.m. (0500 GMT) on Thursday afternoon.
In parallel to Yoon’s criminal investigation, the Constitutional Court is scheduled to hold a second hearing in his impeachment trial. The court’s decision will determine whether Yoon would be permanently removed or reinstated as president.
First sitting president to be detained
Yoon was arrested on Wednesday in a dramatic , becoming South Korea’s first sitting president to be detained.
Hundreds of security officials climbed over barricades and scaled up the compound to the house where Yoon was staying, surrounded by guards.
He was questioned for hours on Wednesday but exercised his right to remain silent, and was moved to the Seoul Detention Center. He was expected to have spent the night in a solitary cell.
Authorities can detain him for 48 hours, after which they will need a new warrant to detain him for another 20 days. Then, they would have enough time to formalize an indictment.
A hearing to look into the legality of the warrant used to arrest him is scheduled later on Thursday, after his lawyers filed for a review.
An official from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) said they have a questionnaire of more than 200 pages prepared for Yoon.
Why was Yoon detained?
Yoon’s detention is the latest consequence of his brief attempt to impose martial law in December, which has spiralled into a major political and constitutional crisis in the country.
The former prosecutor faces allegations of masterminding insurrection and could face life in jail or even the death penalty if found guilty.
Prior to his detention, he evaded arrest for weeks by remaining in his residential compound, protected by members of the Presidential Security Service (PSS).
Yoon stresses his investigation was illegal and the arrest warrant used to detain him was invalid.
Several opinion polls say a majority of support his impeachment, but naturally his staunch followers oppose it.
tg/rmt (AFP, AP, Reuters)
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