[Breaking] Court Dismisses President Yoon's Objection to Arrest Warrant Execution

The court dismissed President Yoon Suk-yeol's objection to the execution of the arrest and search warrant on the 5th.

According to the legal community, on this day, Judge Ma Seong-young of the Seoul Western District Court dismissed President Yoon's objection on the 5th. The specific reasons for the dismissal were not disclosed.

Previously, President Yoon's attorney, Yoon Gap-geun, had raised an objection to the court on the 2nd, arguing that there were issues with the warrant content ahead of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials' attempt to execute the warrant. The objection claimed that the phrase 'Articles 110 and 111 of the Criminal Procedure Act do not apply to this warrant' in the search warrant issued by the Western District Court violated Article 12 of the Constitution, which states that 'no arrest, detention, search, or seizure shall be made except by law.'

Attorney Yoon argued, "The President, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, inherently pertains to military secrets. The Presidential Office, the residence where the President stays, and the President's body cannot be searched or seized without the consent of the person in charge," and added, "The warrant issued with such conditions violates Articles 110 and 111 of the Criminal Procedure Act, and since the court excluded the application of the law without any legal basis, the warrant is illegal and void."

Hong Min-seong, Hankyung.com reporter mshong@hankyung.com