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South Koreaformer Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun, who is arrested for his role in the president’s failed attempt impose state of emergencytried to kill himself in custody, corrections officials told parliament.
Mr. Kim tried to kill himself at a detention center in Seoul, but his attempt was unsuccessful, said Shin Yong Hae, commissioner general of the Korean Correctional Service. The former minister is now in a stable condition and is in a protective cell, he added.
Mr. Kim was the first person to be detained after the president Yoon Suk Yeol‘s a brief declaration of emergency last weekwhich plunged this East Asian country into a political crisis. Mr Kim reportedly advised the president to declare martial law and resigned as defense minister shortly afterwards.
He was officially arrested on Wednesday after a court in Seoul approved a warrant for him on gambling charges key role in rebellion and abuse of position.
“We have considered the degree to which the allegations are supported, the gravity of the crime and the concern that it will destroy evidence,” the court said, according to Korea Herald. Prosecutors claimed that Mr. Kim “convinced the president to start riots in an attempt to undermine the national constitution.”
The former minister has reportedly been interrogated three times since he was detained on Sunday after voluntarily appearing for the investigation.
He reportedly admitted during questioning that he proposed a state of emergency to the president, but claimed that it was neither illegal nor unconstitutional, Yonhap news agency reported.
The police raided on Wednesday President Yoon’s office in Seoul in their intensified investigation after parliament passed a bill on Tuesday to appoint a permanent special counsel to investigate the president on sedition charges.
Unlike a regular special counsel investigation, the president does not have the authority to veto legislation establishing a permanent special prosecutor. However, he can postpone the appointment of a defense attorney.
Mr Yoon sent shockwaves around the world after he declared a state of emergency, the country’s first in four decades, which lasted about six hours before being lifted by parliament.
Mr Yoon survived an impeachment attempt last Saturday when the ruling party boycotted the vote, but the Democratic Party aims to put the new proposal to a vote on Saturday. After last week’s impeachment bid failed, Mr. Yoon’s conservative party leader vowed to organize his smooth exit from power, saying the party would coordinate with cabinet members on state affairs and that the president would be removed from office before an early election.
Mr. Yoon is banned from leaving the country.
South Korea’s national police chief and Seoul’s top police official have been detained for their roles in implementing the president’s short-lived state of emergency decree.
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