Special counsel rejects ex-President Yoon's request for private appearance

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol arrives at Seoul Central District Court, Monday. Joint Press Corp

The special counsel investigating former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law bid rejected his request Thursday to appear for questioning in private.

Park Ji-young, a deputy to Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-suk, told reporters Yoon's lawyers had asked that he be allowed to use the underground parking when appearing at the team's office on Saturday.

"No former president has ever entered through the underground parking," she said, listing everyone from Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo to Lee Myung-bak, Park Geun-hye and Roh Moo-hyun. "We told them that we cannot accept their request to change the entry method."

In response, she said Yoon's lawyers submitted a written opinion that he cannot appear for questioning unless the request for underground parking is accepted.

"This can be considered an effective rejection of questioning by appearance," Park said.

The deputy special counsel suggested the team could reapply for a detention warrant for Yoon, saying, "In such a case, anyone would consider steps under the Criminal Procedure Code."

Hours earlier, Yoon's lawyers told the press that he wishes to appear in private — not publicly — at Cho's office at the Seoul High Prosecutors Office in southern Seoul at 10 a.m. Saturday, one hour later than requested by the special counsel's team.

"An open and humiliating summoning is not an investigation but a political act," the lawyers said in a press release, noting the special counsel's office did not have prior consultations about the time and place of questioning the suspect nor give any notice about the prosecutor in charge of the case.

Park later said the request for a one-hour delay was accepted.

Yoon's lawyers added that the prosecution allowed a closed-door appearance for former Justice Minister Cho Kuk in the past.

Cho's team seeks to investigate Yoon on charges of ordering the Presidential Security Service to block the execution of a detention warrant against him by the state anti-corruption investigation agency in early January and delete his phone records with military commanders over his Dec. 3 martial law imposition.

The Seoul Central District Court dismissed the special counsel's request to detain Yoon on Wednesday.