Presidential Security Service chief, others, summoned as suspects on Saturday over suspicions of obstructing warrant execution
GWACHEON, Gyeonggi Province -- The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials said Friday that it has withdrawn from the presidential residence due to safety concerns, explaining its staff was outnumbered by Presidential Security Service personnel.
"We were able to approach almost 200 meters away from the presidential residence, but approximately 200 Presidential Security Service and military forces combined guarded the building, putting themselves as a human barricade and armed with personal firearms," the official told reporters at a press briefing at the CIO's headquarters in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, Friday.
He said almost 100 CIO investigators and police combined were mobilized in to execute the court-issued arrest warrant for the detention of President Yoon Suk Yeol. But they were not able to breach the final gate of the presidential residence, which was protected by about twice as many people as the investigative authorities.
"Three of our officials were able to get closer, but they encountered two of Yoon's lawyers, who stated that they could not comply with the warrant, calling it unconstitutional, invalid," the official said.
The CIO official also shared that the investigators and police were not able to see the suspended president.
"We were not able to go inside the residence," he said. "We did not see Yoon Suk Yeol today."
Authorities have summoned Park Jong-jun, chief of the Presidential Security Service, and others, for questioning on Saturday over suspicions they "unlawfully obstructed the execution of a warrant."
When asked whether the CIO had made a misjudgment in regard to the number of investigators and police deployed, the official said he could not evaluate such a matter.
The official stated that future measures will be decided after reviewing the situation. He added it is difficult to say as to resuming the operation later the same day or making an announcement about when the team would again attempt to execute the warrant to detain Yoon.
The CIO previously announced that it would execute the court-issued warrant at approximately 8 a.m. Friday, deploying about 100 CIO officials and police officers. Though investigators entered the main gate of the presidential residence, the ensuing standoff lasted more than five hours. The authority decided to halt the warrant execution at 1:30 p.m.
Yun Gap-geun, an attorney representing President Yoon, criticized the CIO's attempt to execute the warrant, saying investigators were breaking into a military-protected area and a designated security zone.
