Former President Yoon faces arrest warrant over orders to display firearms during standoff

It is time for the former president to stop hiding behind subordinates and accept responsibility for his actions.

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol leaves the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office building in southern Seoul on July 5 after undergoing a second round of questioning by the special counsel team investigating insurrection allegations. [YONHAP]

A special investigation team led by Independent Counsel Cho Eun-seok formally requested an arrest warrant for former President Yoon Suk Yeol on July 6 in connection with the martial law case. A court hearing to review the warrant is scheduled for July 9 at the Seoul Central District Court. Yoon, who was released in March after a previous arrest warrant was overturned, once again faces potential detention. He is charged with obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and fabrication and use of false official documents.

The arrest warrant contains several allegations that appear both serious and implausible. According to the special counsel, Yoon allegedly ordered members of the Presidential Security Service (PSS) to obstruct prosecutors’ efforts to detain him, including instructions to display firearms during patrols.

On Jan. 7, ahead of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials’ (CIO) second attempt to execute a detention warrant, Yoon reportedly sent a message to then-PSS Deputy Chief Kim Sung-hoon stating that the PSS "protects the safety of current and former presidents, regardless of political affiliation." Days later, on Jan. 11, during a lunch meeting at the presidential residence, Yoon told aides, “The press says tactical units and riot police are coming, but our security officers are better trained with firearms. Just showing the guns would be enough to make them hesitate. Let them see we’re armed.” This statement was cited in the warrant.

Although there were some ambiguities regarding the CIO’s jurisdiction at the time, the court had issued a lawful arrest warrant. Yoon’s alleged order to prevent its execution, particularly by suggesting a display of armed force, represents a disregard for legal authority. The warrant also accuses Yoon of orchestrating a post hoc fabrication of the martial law proclamation to conceal procedural and legal irregularities. Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun allegedly signed the document at Yoon’s request before it was later discarded at Han’s insistence.

Police officers carry a ladder outside the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan District, on January 15, 2025, as the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) and police move to execute a second arrest warrant for then President Yoon Suk Yeol. [YONHAP]

In response to the warrant, Yoon’s legal team criticized the move as excessive, claiming he never ordered resistance and that contesting an unlawful arrest cannot constitute obstruction of justice. However, the warrant reportedly includes testimony from Kim, the former PSS deputy, who provided statements unfavorable to Yoon after Yoon’s lawyers left the room.

As a result of Yoon’s decisions, multiple former Cabinet members have come under investigation, and senior military officers who executed the martial law plan are now on trial. Key facts — such as the attempted military deployment to the National Assembly on the day martial law was declared — undermine Yoon’s claims. It is time for the former president to stop hiding behind subordinates and accept responsibility for his actions.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.