Particle.news
Download on the App Store
10 ARTICLES
·
8h ago

Special Counsel Seeks Arrest Warrant for Ex–Prime Minister Han in Martial Law Case

Prosecutors cite an evidence‑tampering risk ahead of a court review expected within days.

President Yoon Suk Yeol (R) and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo attend a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in central Seoul in this Oct. 29, 2024, file photo. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo (R) arrives at the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in Seoul on Aug. 22, 2025, to undergo questioning by special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team over his alleged involvement in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched imposition of martial law. (Yonhap)
Image
Image

Overview

  • Special Counsel Cho Eun-suk’s team filed the request on Aug. 24 to detain Han Duck-soo over his alleged role in former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 martial law declaration.
  • The warrant cites six allegations, including aiding the ringleader of insurrection, perjury, falsifying and damaging official records, and violations of the Presidential Records Act.
  • Investigators say Han proposed a rapid Cabinet session, signed a backdated ‘post‑facto’ proclamation to legitimize the decree, and later told aides to destroy the document.
  • Han recently reversed earlier testimony by admitting he received the decree directly from Yoon, a shift prosecutors say supports perjury charges.
  • If approved, it would be the first arrest of a former prime minister, and a related sweep on Aug. 25 targeted ex‑Justice Minister Park Sung-jae and ex‑Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung as the probe expands.