Ex-Prime Minister Han faces arrest for martial law debacle, decision expected midnight Wednesday

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has arrived for his detention hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Wednesday.

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Aug. 27 to attend his pretrial detention. [YONHAP]

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo appeared in court on Wednesday as prosecutors sought his arrest, accusing him of helping former President Yoon Suk Yeol try to impose martial law in December 2024.

The Seoul Central District Court began a hearing at 1:30 p.m., presided over by Judge Jeong Jae-wook, who specializes in detention warrants.

Han is the third member of Yoon’s Cabinet to face possible detention in connection with the martial law imposition, following former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and former Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min. It is the first time in Korea’s constitutional history that a pretrial arrest warrant was requested for a former prime minister.

He did not answer reporters’ questions regarding his role in the imposition as he made his way inside the building.

The special counsel team, led by Cho Eun-seok, underscored the need for detention, submitting a 362-page opinion brief to the court. Eight prosecutors attended the hearing, armed with a 160-page PowerPoint presentation. They also planned to present closed-circuit television footage from the presidential office around the time of the martial law declaration.

“We will actively present arguments to establish the charges,” said Assistant Special Counsel Park Ji-young in a briefing after the session began.

The team requested an arrest warrant for Han on Sunday on charges including aiding Yoon of insurrection, perjury, falsifying official documents and using them, damaging public records and violating the Presidential Records Act. The 54-page warrant application argued that the seriousness of the alleged crimes, the risk of flight or destruction of evidence and the possibility of reoffending made custody necessary.

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Aug. 27 to attend his pretrial detention. [NEWS1]

Prosecutors said Han, as prime minister and deputy chair of the Cabinet, had a constitutional duty to block what they described as Yoon’s unlawful declaration of martial law. They cited constitutional scholar Yoo Jin-oh, who drafted Korea’s first constitution, as noting that parliamentary approval for the prime minister’s appointment was intended to check presidential power.

Han has denied wrongdoing, telling investigators that he urged Yoon not to proceed with the declaration and that “all Cabinet members were worried and opposed it.”

Investigators suspect Han proposed convening a Cabinet meeting shortly before the declaration to satisfy procedural requirements. They are also probing his alleged involvement in drafting and later destroying a so-called “postdated martial law proclamation,” which they believe was designed to cover legal defects in the original order.

Han had testified in the Constitutional Court and other settings that he never saw the original proclamation, but during questioning on Aug. 19, he reversed his position and admitted that Yoon handed him the document. Prosecutors consequently added perjury to the charges.

The court is expected to decide around midnight Wednesday whether to issue the detention warrant. If approved, the investigation could expand to other ministers suspected of complicity.

On Monday, prosecutors searched the home of former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae. They are also looking into former Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok, who allegedly received a note referencing emergency legislative funds during the period of martial law.

Update, Aug. 27: More details on Han's arrival and the case against him added. Update, Aug. 27 : More details on Han's alleged crimes added.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY NA UN-CHAE, SUK GYEONG-MIN, SHIN MIN-HEE [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]