CNN —
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been arrested, according to the country’s anti corruption agency, the latest chapter in a weekslong political showdown that began with the embattled president’s shock martial law decree last month.
South Korean authorities investigating Yoon had arrived at his official residence earlier this morning in a second attempt to detain the embattled leader for questioning over his short-lived declaration.
For weeks, the embattled president has been holed up in his fortified residence, surrounded by his Presidential Security Service team, evading arrest as he faces several probes and an impeachment trial following his short-lived decree.
Yoon is wanted for questioning in multiple investigations, including over accusations of leading an insurrection – a crime punishable by life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
Efforts to take him into custody earlier this month were thwarted after an hours-long showdown in which soldiers and members of the presidential security detail blocked some 80 police and investigators from approaching the presidential compound.
Opposing protesters quickly arrived at the scene on Wednesday. Video from Reuters and CNN affiliate YTN showed demonstrators pulling up in buses and gathering in the streets around the presidential compound.
Despite sub-zero conditions, some demonstrators could be heard chanting “resign,” “your time is up” and “take responsibility.” Supporters of the embattled president, meanwhile, could be heard at the scene chanting “invalid impeachment,” “free ROK, hurrah!” and “we won!”
The crowds were accompanied by lines of uniformed police, and a combination of police buses and protester buses remained outside the residence, blockading the street.
A YTN video showed a large sign on the back of one bus that read “Insurrection Department – Yoon Suk Yeol” in Korean – a slogan typical of anti-Yoon protests since the president launched his martial law decree last month.
A court approved a warrant to detain the president earlier this month after Yoon, a former prosecutor, refused to answer three summonses by investigators in recent weeks asking for his cooperation, according to the CIO.
The warrant allows investigators to hold Yoon for up to 48 hours. The CIO would need to apply for an arrest warrant within that period to detain him further.
