(Adnkronos) – Former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol refused to appear for questioning in the investigation into his controversial declaration of martial law last December, after which he was impeached. Prosecutors announced that they are evaluating alternative measures to compel him to appear, after the former head of state failed to attend the hearing scheduled for 2 p.m. local time, despite the legal obligation to do so.
According to the office of special prosecutor Park Ji Young, a formal request has been submitted to the Seoul detention center – where Yoon returned to custody last Thursday – to force his participation. However, his legal team stated that “nothing has changed” since the last summons and that their client will not provide new information.
Yoon is accused of abuse of power, falsification of official documents and obstruction of justice for attempting to prevent his own arrest, including through the intervention of his personal escort. According to the prosecution, he also ordered the destruction of the confidential phones of several senior officers involved, and had a “corrected” version of the martial law declaration rewritten to correct its irregularities, which was then destroyed to avoid further tensions.
