President Yoon Suk Yeol became the first sitting South Korean leader to be taken into custody for questioning on criminal charges on Wednesday, reaching a deal with mass law enforcement officials and ending a weeks-long standoff.
The security guards of Mr. Yoon successfully prevented investigators from arresting him on January 3 when they made their first attempt to serve a court-issued arrest warrant. Since then, the country has been gripped by fears that a violent conflict could erupt if both sides refuse to back down.
But when investigators returned on Wednesday with many more officers, some carrying ladders to the barricades, Mr. Yun offered no apparent resistance.
Mr. Yoon will now face questioning by officials investigating the Dec. 3 declaration of martial law. Investigators can now question him for 48 hours, after which they could apply for a separate court warrant to formally arrest him.
The opposition-led National Assembly fought to vote down this statement and accused him of committing rebellion by sending armed troops into the Assembly to occupy the legislature and arrest his political enemies.
At the same time, the country’s Constitutional Court is examining whether the Assembly’s vote on December 14 to impeach Mr. Yun was legal and if he should be formally removed from his duties.
Police buses began gathering before dawn on Wednesday outside the hilltop presidential compound where Mr. Yun was hidden from his impeachment. He was the first South Korean leader to place his country under military rule since the country’s democratization began in the late 1980s.
Investigators and police gathered at the main gate of Mr. Yoon in the early hours of Wednesday. Carrying ladders to overcome bus barricades blocking the road, they arrived at the entrance to the residence of Mr. Yoon, where they held discussions with the president’s security guards and lawyers.
Around 8:30 a.m., Seok Dong-hyeon, a lawyer serving as Mr. Yoon, posted on Facebook that the president had not yet been arrested and that his legal team was negotiating with investigators about the possibility of Mr. Yoon voluntarily submitting himself for questioning.
Investigators have prepared for a repeat of the confrontation that took place on January 3, when they first visited the residence of Mr. Yoon to issue an arrest warrant. They were then outnumbered by the presidential security agents and had to beat a humiliating retreat after a standoff that lasted five and a half hours.
On Wednesday morning, with the lawyers of Mr. With Yoon, lawmakers from his party and presidential security personnel standing outside the gates of the compound, it appeared that he and his supporters were preparing to resist a renewed effort to detain him. Live footage of the road leading to his compound in the morning showed a tense confrontation in sub-zero temperatures, with some shoving and physical struggles at one point.
From the first attempt to arrest Mr. Yoon, his security guards had fortified the compound by deploying more buses and razor wire to block the gates and walls. Mr. Yoon has vowed to “fight to the end” to return to office and said he will not surrender to a court order he considers illegal.
South Korea’s acting president, Vice Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, warned government agencies involved in the confrontation against violence.
“All the people and the international community are watching,” he said in a statement. “We cannot tolerate physical violence for any purpose because it will irreparably damage the public’s trust and our international reputation.”
The effort to take in Mr. Yun and force him to answer to sedition charges is the first time in South Korea’s history that authorities have tried to arrest a sitting president. The unfolding events have gripped the country, with news and social media channels broadcasting live coverage. There are fears of violent conflict if neither side backs down.
A day earlier, the Constitutional Court began a hearing on whether to oust Mr. Yoon, who did not appear in the proceedings. His lawyers said he feared investigators would arrest him if he left his presidential compound.
In the latest attempt to serve the warrant, the Presidential Security Service, a government agency tasked with protecting the president and his family, outnumbered the Chief Corruption Investigation Office, or CIO, which sought to arrest him with the help of police. He deployed 200 bodyguards and soldiers to block 100 CIO agents and police.
Jin Yu Young contributed to the report.
