Former South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who is accused of leading President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived martial law declaration, attempted suicide while in detention, the country’s Ministry of Justice stated on Dec. 10.
Kim attempted suicide using a shirt and underwear while at a detention center in Seoul, South Korea, according to the ministry. His life is not currently in danger, it stated.
Kim is being investigated over insurrection and abuse of power allegations related to Yoon’s martial law declaration on Dec. 3, the first such declaration since 1980.
The declaration, which lasted just six hours before the South Korean leader reversed it, sparked widespread concern and prompted tens of thousands of people to take to the streets across the country in protest.
The focus of the investigation is to determine whether Yoon, Kim, and others involved in imposing martial law committed rebellion. A conviction for rebellion carries a maximum penalty of death.
Prosecutors allege that Kim recommended martial law to Yoon and sent troops to the National Assembly to block lawmakers from voting on the decree.
The National Assembly, with 190 of its 300 members present, unanimously voted to oppose it.
Kim, one of Yoon’s close associates, had served as defense minister since September but stepped down amid the investigation into his alleged actions.
He was banned from leaving the country and detained on Dec. 8 before being formally arrested on Dec. 11, making him the first person to be formally arrested over the martial law decree.
Yoon Apologizes for Martial Law Declaration
On Dec. 10, South Korea’s parliament passed a bill appointing a special counsel to investigate Yoon’s attempt to impose martial law.He has also been banned from leaving the country by the Justice Ministry.
Despite calls for him to resign, he has not yet stepped down. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho said on Dec. 11 that Yoon remains in charge of the military.
South Korean police also detained National Police Agency Commissioner General Cho Ji Ho and Kim Bong-sik, head of Seoul’s metropolitan police, on Dec. 10 as part of their probe of the short-lived decree.
The two senior officials are accused of deploying police forces to the National Assembly to block lawmakers from voting.
Police also stated that they sent officers to search Yoon’s office and look for any evidence related to the martial law introduction but were unable to enter the main building. Police were unable to agree with the Secret Service on the method of the seizure and search, according to the Yonhap News Agency.
