Yoon Suk-yeol's "escape" from first arrest attempt: Mobilizing supporters is his final struggle

As we entered the new year in South Korea, we found ourselves in uncharted territory. We were navigating the political whirlpool triggered by the declaration of a state of emergency and impeachment, and now, the tragic fog of Air Jijoung's airline crash. Prime Minister Choi Seong-mu, acting as South Korea's acting president, is in a precarious position, and the political situation has taken a sharp turn due to the statement by impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol that he would "fight to the end." Chaos has ensued, and the situation seems impossible to control.

On January 3, after a five-and-a-half-hour standoff inside Seoul's Cheong Wa Dae presidential office in Jongno-gu, the first attempt to arrest Yoon Suk-yeol failed. According to Xinhua News, the South Korean "Joint Investigation Headquarters" was unable to enforce the arrest warrant against the suspended president, Yoon Suk-yeol, and thus decided to suspend the arrest.

At 7:16 a.m. local time on the morning of the 3rd, a large group of about 150 dark-clad law enforcement officers, including 30 from the Department of High Officials' Crime Investigation (ROSCO) and 120 from the Police Special Investigation Team, arrived at the entrance of the presidential residence to enforce the arrest warrant against Yoon Suk-yeol. However, they were blocked by the military police of the 55th Security Battalion from the Army's Capital Defense Command, stationed at the presidential residence. In the end, they were only able to advance to the main gate of the residence, overcoming only two checkpoints.

The head of the presidential residence security detachment, Park Jong-joon, stated that he "does not allow the search" because the security action is part of his "legal duty." He also described the arrest action as "a threat to the safety of the president." Park was appointed by Yoon in September, and, according to South Korean media, he was directly involved in the declaration of martial law. On the day the state of emergency was declared, he visited the president's "secure house" in Samcheong-dong, and on the day the state of emergency was lifted the following day, he entered the presidential residence. He has clearly stated his loyalty to Yoon, and on January 3, the Joint Investigation Headquarters decided to file a complaint against the head of the presidential guard, the deputy head of the presidential guard, and the head of the residential area for "obstruction of special public duty."

However, Park Jong-joon was not alone in his legal justification for resisting the arrest order. Yoon Suk-yeol's lawyer argued: "The ROSCO does not have the authority to investigate the offense of internal disturbance, and the court's issuance of an arrest warrant based on an application by the ROSCO is illegal and invalid." Moreover, even if the ROSCO had an arrest warrant, it would be difficult to enforce it. According to Yoon's lawyer, there are divisions and jurisdictional issues between the investigative agencies. The South Korean "Joint Investigation Headquarters" that will enforce the arrest warrant is composed of three parties: the police, the ROSCO, and the Ministry of National Defense. According to South Korea's National Intelligence Service Law, the police and the ROSCO have investigative authority, while the Ministry of National Defense has investigative authority only if requested by the police or the ROSCO. In this case, the police and the ROSCO must jointly consult on the investigation and the Ministry of National Defense must follow their instructions. Therefore, there were two days between the court's issuance of the arrest warrant on December 31 and the start of the arrest attempt on January 3, during which time the three parties could not decide on their roles in the investigation and arrest.

The arrest warrant for Yoon Suk-yeol is valid until January 6, and whether the arrest can be carried out within this period remains uncertain.

On December 31, 2024, the Seoul Western District Court issued an arrest warrant for Yoon Suk-yeol on charges of inciting an internal disturbance and abuse of authority. Applying for and issuing an arrest warrant for an incumbent president has no precedent in South Korea's constitutional history. Previously, former presidents such as Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, Park Geun-hye, and Lee Myung-bak were arrested after their terms ended, and the arrest warrants were served by the court. However, Yoon Suk-yeol, despite being impeached, said, "I will fight to the end," and directly challenged the South Korean judicial system. This confrontation with the judiciary has no historical precedent.

In fact, this dramatic scene had been predicted by many people. On January 1, Park Eun-jung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on a social media platform, "Yoon will be furious when the order to execute the arrest warrant comes, and the scene will be intense." Part of the reason for this stems from Yoon Suk-yeol's long career as a prosecutor. As the chief prosecutor of the special investigation team, he was responsible for investigating former presidents Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak and sending them to prison. Now, in a role reversal, the sword of investigation that he once wielded is being turned against him. It is believed that Yoon Suk-yeol may be emotionally unable to accept this situation.

"I will fight to the end to protect you and the country." On the first day of 2025, Yoon Suk-yeol sent a message to the people who gathered in front of the presidential residence. In the message, he said that he saw everyone's efforts through YouTube Live. "South Korea is in grave danger due to threats to our sovereignty from both inside and outside the country, as well as the actions of anti-state forces." He called on everyone to work even harder together.

In fact, Yoon Suk-yeol's close ties with right-wing YouTube creators were a controversial topic before he became president. Right-wing YouTubers have been creating a favorable atmosphere for Yoon and his wife, Kim Keon-hee, ever since he took office.

When Yoon Suk-yeol held his presidential inauguration ceremony in May 2022, several far-right YouTube personalities were invited. Later, several of these YouTubers were appointed to government positions. Among them was Kim Chaehwan, a far-right YouTuber. In May 2022, he produced and uploaded a video to YouTube claiming that the 21st National Assembly election was rigged. In July 2023, he was appointed as the director of the National Civil Service Personnel Development Institute, and in September, he used the agency's official social media channel to defend Kim Keon-hee, Yoon Suk-yeol's wife, who was embroiled in a scandal over receiving luxury handbags. After the declaration of the state of emergency, he continued to post videos on his personal social media account, arguing that the declaration was "justified."

On January 1, about 6,000 supporters gathered in front of the presidential residence to show their support for Yoon Suk-yeol. When a staff member delivered the message to the leader of the gathering, the crowd responded with cheers. The far-right YouTuber said: "We must prevent the arrest by standing in front of the presidential residence with our bodies." Joo Seong-jae, the chief spokesperson for the Democratic Party, said that Yoon Suk-yeol's message clearly showed that he remains delusional and continues to attempt to incite an internal disturbance by mobilizing his supporters.

On the day Yoon Suk-yeol was impeached by the National Assembly on December 14, he responded: "I will not give up." Since then, he has neither appeared in public nor made public statements. However, his struggle has not ceased. At the end of 2024, Yoon Suk-yeol refused to accept the summonses issued by the ROSCO three times, and he also refused to submit plans, evidence lists, and defense papers according to the requirements of the Constitutional Court.

Looking back at previous cases of presidential impeachment in South Korea, after Park Geun-hye's impeachment motion was passed by the National Assembly, she submitted the power of attorney for litigation and the defense paper after a week. Former Special Prosecutor Roh Moo-hyun submitted the power of attorney for litigation and the defense paper five days after being impeached.

Under these circumstances, on the last day of 2024, the Seoul Western District Court approved an arrest warrant for Yoon Suk-yeol on suspicion of inciting an internal disturbance. The arrest warrant is valid for seven days from the date of issuance, until January 6, 2025. Soon after the arrest warrant was issued, Yoon Suk-yeol stated through his lawyer that the arrest warrant was illegal. Then he continued to confront the South Korean judiciary through legal actions and propaganda.

On the legal front, Yoon Suk-yeol's lawyers lodged an objection to the arrest and search warrant to the Seoul Western District Court, requesting that the court not approve enforcement. According to South Korean media, the arrest and search warrant has the words "exception to the application of Articles 110 and 111 of the Criminal Procedure Act" on it. Articles 110 and 111 of the Criminal Procedure Act state that even for places related to public or military secrets, searches and seizures can be carried out with the approval of the person in charge. Yoon Suk-yeol's side believes that placing the arrest warrant outside the scope of the Criminal Procedure Act is illegal and ineffective.

At the same time, Yoon Suk-yeol's legal team argued that even if the arrest warrant was enforced, it could only be carried out by investigators from the ROSCO and prosecutors, and riot police officers should not be involved directly. The reason they gave was that the ROSCO does not have the authority to command or control police investigative activities.

Due to these demands, the arrest warrant's enforcement was delayed due to disagreements over the specific division of labor. The ROSCO said on December 2 that the details of the division of responsibilities between the relevant agencies and the contingency plan for various situations still needed to be coordinated, so they could not enforce the detention on Yoon Suk-yeol on the 2nd.

On the propaganda front, encouraged by Yoon Suk-yeol's handwritten message, about 10,000 supporters gathered on January 2 on the road in front of the presidential residence to prevent the police from enforcing the arrest warrant. According to Joongang Daily, the number of demonstrators was twice as many as the day before. Law enforcement officers must pass through a narrow alley to reach the main gate of the presidential residence, and it would be difficult for them to avoid physical conflicts with the crowd.

In fact, most South Korean citizens' attitude toward Yoon Suk-yeol is clear. On January 2, a New Year's survey conducted by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) found that more than 70% of respondents believed that the declaration of a national emergency was a "major criminal act."

However, Yoon Suk-yeol, a career prosecutor, is very familiar with the country's judicial procedures. He knows very well that if he can continue to delay time, he will have more room to maneuver. South Korean media reported that after exhausting all legal options, mobilizing supporters and sending signals such as "Protect me