Hundreds of law enforcement officials in South Korea have entered the residential compound of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol in the capital Seoul, marking a dramatic escalation in the investigation surrounding embattled leader.
It was their second attempt to detain him over his imposition of martial law last month.
Following an hours long stand-off at the compound's gate, anti-corruption investigators and police officers were seen moving up the hilly compound.
Police officers were earlier seen using ladders to climb over rows of buses placed by the presidential security service near the compound's entrance.
Law enforcement officials may face more obstacles as they approach Mr Yoon's residential building.
Yoon Suk Yeol has not left the presidential compound for weeks. (Reuters: South Korea Presidential Office, file)
Police vow to use more force to detain president
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials and police are jointly investigating whether Mr Yoon's brief martial law declaration on December 3 amounted to an attempted rebellion.
They pledged more forceful measures to detain him after the presidential security service blocked their initial efforts on January 3.
Anti-corruption investigators and police officers could be deployed in a potentially multi-day operation to apprehend Mr Yoon, who has been holed up in the Hannam-dong residence for weeks.
Mr Yoon has justified his martial law decree as a legitimate act of governance against an "anti-state" opposition bogging down his agenda with its legislative majority and vowed to "fight to the end" against efforts to oust him.
Despite a court warrant for Mr Yoon's detention, the presidential security service has insisted it is obligated to protect the impeached president and has fortified the compound with barbed wire and rows of buses blocking paths.
As tensions escalated, South Korea's acting leader Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, issued a statement urging law enforcement and the presidential security service to ensure there are no "physical clashes".
Police use ladders to get past barricades at compound
Groups of police officers in police vehicles, including a white van possibly with members of a search and arrest team inside, were seen in front of the presidential compound's closed metal gate.
Separate groups of police officers were also seen moving up a trekking path near the hilly compound, apparently pursuing another route to get inside.
Some police officers were later seen successfully entering the residence, using ladders to climb over rows of buses the presidential security service placed as a barricade.
Police officers stand guard near the official residence. (Reuters: Tyrone Siu)
Mr Yoon's lawyers said the presidential security service will continue to provide security for Mr Yoon and claimed that the detainment warrant issued by the Seoul Western District Court was invalid.
They cited a law that protects locations potentially linked to military secrets from search without the consent of the person in charge — which would be Mr Yoon.
The court warrant for Mr Yoon's detainment is valid until January 21.
Yoon's supporters remain defiant
MPs from Mr Yoon's People Power Party, along with at least one of his lawyers, were earlier seen at the residence's gate, apparently arguing with anti-corruption officials and police officers attempting to enter.
Hundreds of Mr Yoon's supporters and critics held competing protests near the residence — one side vowing to protect him, the other calling for his imprisonment, while thousands of police officers in yellow jackets closely monitored the situation, setting up perimeters with buses.
Mr Yoon's top aide had pleaded with law enforcement agencies to abandon their efforts to detain him.
Presidential Chief of Staff Chung Jin-suk said Mr Yoon could instead be questioned at a "third site" or at his residence and said the anti-corruption agency and police were trying to drag him out like he was a member of a "South American drug cartel."
Some MPs were at Mr Yoon's residence in a show of support for the impeached president. (Reuters: Tyrone Siu)
Presidential bodyguards warned of potential arrest
But Yoon Kab-keun, one of the president's lawyers, said Mr Chung issued the message without consulting them and that the legal team has no immediate plan to make the president available for questioning by investigators.
If investigators manage to detain Mr Yoon they will likely ask a court for permission to make a formal arrest. Otherwise, he will be released after 48 hours.
Mr Yoon has not left his official residence in Seoul for weeks, and the presidential security service prevented dozens of investigators from detaining him after a nearly six-hour stand-off on January 3.
The National Police Agency has convened multiple meetings of field commanders in Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi province in recent days to plan their detainment efforts, and the size of those forces fuelled speculation that more than a thousand officers could be deployed in a possible multi-day operation.
The agency and police have openly warned that presidential bodyguards obstructing the execution of the warrant could be arrested.
Mr Yoon declared martial law and deployed troops around the National Assembly on December 3.
It lasted only hours before lawmakers managed to get through the blockade and vote to lift the measure.
Mr Yoon has continued to receive plenty of support. Â (AP Photo: Lee Jin-man)
Mr Yoon's presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on December 14, accusing him of rebellion.
His fate now rests with the Constitutional Court, which has begun deliberating on whether to formally remove Mr Yoon from office or reject the charges and reinstate him.
In preventing Mr Yoon's detention on January 3, presidential bodyguards were assisted by troops assigned to guard the presidential residence under the command of the presidential security service.
However, Defence Ministry spokesperson Lee Kyung-ho said Tuesday the troops will no longer participate in efforts to block the execution of Mr Yoon's detention warrant and will focus solely on guarding the compound's perimeter.
AP
