Synopsis
Former South Korean Interior Minister Lee Sang-min was questioned overnight regarding his alleged role in the martial law declared by ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol. The investigation focuses on utility disruptions affecting critical media outlets during this period.Key Takeaways
- Lee Sang-min questioned over martial law involvement.
- Allegations of utility disruptions to media outlets.
- Investigation includes testimonies and forensic analysis.
- Yoon's martial law declaration led to political turmoil.
- Yoon became the second South Korean President removed from office.
Seoul, April 19 (NationPress) Former South Korean Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min returned home on Saturday after an overnight police interrogation regarding his alleged participation in former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's brief implementation of martial law late last year.
The ex-minister faced a special police investigation team around 2 p.m. on Friday as a suspect in the ongoing inquiry. He was released about 18 hours later, around 7:40 a.m. on Saturday.
Lee is suspected of instructing the National Fire Agency to cut off power and water supplies to several media outlets that were critical of former President Yoon following his martial law declaration on December 3.
He reportedly refuted the allegations against him. It is reported that he spent over three hours, starting at approximately 4 a.m., reviewing and amending his official statement.
Investigators are trying to ascertain if the utility interruptions were initially ordered by President Yoon, and whether Lee executed those commands, as reported by Yonhap news agency.
The ongoing investigation includes testimonies from fire department personnel and forensic analysis of materials collected during raids on Lee's home and offices in Seoul and Sejong in February, according to sources familiar with the case.
Meanwhile, Yoon, who swiftly transitioned from a top prosecutor to the presidency in about three years, became the second President in the nation’s history to be formally removed from office. His unexpected martial law attempt stirred the nation for months and intensified political polarization.
With this ruling, Yoon, aged 64, follows the path of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who was ousted in 2017 when the Constitutional Court upheld her impeachment linked to a corruption scandal.
Before assuming the nation's highest office, Yoon began his career as a prosecutor in 1994, advancing through the ranks to lead an investigation team into Park's corruption scandal that ultimately resulted in her ousting and subsequent imprisonment.
In 2019, he was appointed as the nation's chief prosecutor under then South Korean President Moon Jae-in but clashed with the administration while overseeing investigations into family members of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk.
Under mounting pressure from the Moon administration, Yoon resigned from his position in 2021, only to enter politics shortly after and win the presidential election in 2022 as the candidate for the conservative People Power Party.
Yoon's term was fraught with conflict, facing an uncooperative National Assembly dominated by the main Opposition Democratic Party (DP). He exercised his presidential veto against 25 bills passed by the National Assembly.
Tensions with the DP peaked in early December when the main Opposition introduced motions to impeach the country’s top auditor and a senior prosecutor. Yoon declared martial law on December 3, which ultimately led to his downfall.
