Thousands Of South Korean Police Attempt To Raid President Yoon’s Residence: Who’s In Charge?

There is a standoff going on outside the presidential residence in Seoul as police seek to execute a warrant to arrest South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol. 

The standoff has ensued all day, also attracting crowds of protesters, in what began as a huge security operation in the predawn hours of Wednesday (local time). This is the second, and biggest, time an attempt has been made to arrest the sitting president.

It all stems from last month’s botched attempt by the president to impose martial law, after which lawmakers impeached him over potential insurrection. 

The Washington Post reports, “In extraordinary scenes that unfolded in the early hours of Wednesday morning, rows of police buses blocked the main road outside the presidential residence in one of Seoul’s ritziest neighborhoods, stopping traffic and forcing city buses and delivery vehicles to turn around.”

“Throngs of Yoon’s supporters — 6,500 of them, according to a police estimate — gathered outside the residence in an apparent effort to stymie the operation. Some had been camping on the street outside his residence for days,” the report continues.

Yonhap News Agency says that some 3,000 police are involved in the operation. Other reports say that it’s at least 1,000 officers. The efforts to raid the presidential residence have been stymied as lawmakers from Yoon’s conservative People Power Party have made a big showing, at one point forming a human chain to block police from entering.

According to the latest BBC update, “Right now, the police seem to be pushing into the residence – entering from multiple points.” Authorities are also trying to breach the back of the compound.

Predawn scene outside Yoon’s residence:

Attempted arrest of Yoon reportedly underway, with over 1,000 officers mobilized

Protesters have gathered in front of the presidential residence to block it https://t.co/kkbwllzqdS pic.twitter.com/fGs8uxJ0wA

— RT (@RT_com) January 14, 2025

There is a clearly a Constitutional crisis unfolding as the courts and Yeol – along with loyalist lawmakers – are clashing over who exactly is still in charge of government:

This is a picture of the political crisis that South Korea finds itself in.

You’ve got two branches of executive power: the police – essentially law enforcement officers that have a legal arrest warrant that they’re trying to execute – and presidential security staff, who are blocking them.

This raises the question of who exactly is in charge.

The Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), which is heading up the police raid, argues that it has the legal right to make an arrest, while the People Power Party has declared the operation to be unlawful.

“Stop the Steal” signs have been spotted amid the chaos:

More and more protesters are gathering near the presidential residence in South Korea in an attempt to stop 2000+ police officers trying to arrest President Yoon.

The president is protected by a military unit of around 200 soldiers.

The Stop the Steal movement is growing pic.twitter.com/nPQdIaR0Op

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) January 14, 2025

BBC has issued the following timeline of the tumultuous events leading up to the standoff at the presidential residence as follows:

• 3 December: President Yoon declared martial law, plunging South Korea into political chaos – hours later he was forced to back down as furious protestors and lawmakers gathered outside the National Assembly. He then apologised for his actions and said they would not be repeated
• 7 December: Opposition MPs tried, but failed, to impeach Yoon having fallen a handful of votes short

• 14 December: Yoon was suspended from office after another vote saw lawmakers vote to impeach him, however the president can only be removed from office if the decision is upheld by the country’s constitutional court
• 31 December: A court in South Korea issued an arrest warrant for Yoon
• 3 January: Dozens of investigators attempted to arrest him but subsequently gave up after a six-hour stand off with the Presidential Security Service (PSS) outside his official residence
• 14 January: South Korea’s Constitutional Court held its first hearing to decide if the suspended president should be removed from office – the hearing ended in just four minutes because of Yoon’s absence and the next trial is scheduled for Thursday

Scenes outside/near Yoon’s residence pic.twitter.com/HYCdUZRsW8

— Raphael Rashid (@koryodynasty) January 14, 2025

Despite the country’s top court having issued a warrant, he has not responded to any court summons, and investigators have been unable to reach Yoon.