Former South Korean President Jailed Again in Solitary Confinement on Charges of Attempting to Impose Arbitrary Judgments

A South Korean court issued a new arrest warrant against former President "Yoon Suk-yeol" (64 years old) on charges of attempting to impose arbitrary judgments in December 2024.

The decision came after Judge "Nam Se-jin" from the Central Seoul District Court deemed that there was a "real danger to the evidence" that could result from keeping the former president out of prison, leading to his second imprisonment.

Yoon was transferred to a detention center in the "Uiyan" area south of Seoul, where he was placed in "solitary confinement," while the prosecution continues its investigations, with the possibility of extending his detention for up to 20 days.

The former president was previously arrested in January during his term, then released after the arrest warrant was canceled, before being officially impeached in April due to his controversial decision to impose arbitrary judgments.

During a hearing last week, Yoon and his lawyers denied all charges against him, describing the arrest request as "illogical," especially since the former president "no longer holds any authority." However, the court found that "the risk to the evidence remains," prompting the issuance of the arrest warrant.

Yoon Bok-nam, head of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society Association, confirmed to AFP that "Yoon Suk-yeol could face up to six months in prison if the charge is proven," noting that "immediate release is theoretically possible, but the prosecution considers the risk of evidence tampering to be very high."

During the session, Yoon expressed his frustration, saying: "The special prosecutor is attacking even my lawyers, who have started to withdraw one by one, and I soon had to face these charges alone," according to local media reports.

The crisis began when Yoon imposed arbitrary judgments in December 2024 under the pretext of "confronting opposition to the budget and addressing North Korean threats," supported by religious and extremist leaders through platforms like YouTube. However, the decision sparked widespread protests, with hundreds of lawmakers storming the parliament, while thousands of protesters took to the streets demanding his resignation, leading to a rapid collapse of the arbitrary judgments decision just two hours after its announcement.

This warrant comes after the court rejected a previous request on June 25 due to Yoon's failure to appear for questioning. However, the special investigation council resubmitted the request last Sunday, leading to the issuance of the new arrest warrant.