South Korea: Yoon allowed to access court via underground parking lot for 1st criminal trial hearing

The Seoul High Court unveiled security-related measures ahead of Yoon's hearing set for Monday, citing the possibility that a large crowd will likely gather to stage rallies in the area near the Seoul district court where the session will be held.

The measures came as the Presidential Security Service (PSS) had sought the court's permission to allow Yoon to enter the Seoul Central District Court through an underground parking lot, citing security concerns.

"If (the PSS) makes such a request, we will permit it," a court official said.

The first session of Yoon's criminal trial will be held Monday over his short-lived martial law declaration in December. He was formally ousted from office last Friday, as the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment.

The Seoul High Court, which oversees the district court complex, has yet to decide whether to continue allowing such an entry for Yoon in future hearings.

The court, meanwhile, will cordon off entry from all vehicles on the day of the hearing, with the exception of official cars designed for specific tasks, starting at 8 p.m. Friday until midnight Monday.

It also advised its personnel to use public transportation and refrain from using personal vehicles on the day, Yonhap news agency reported.

Meanwhile, Yoon, who dramatically rose from a top prosecutor to the presidency in about three years, became the nation's second President to be formally removed from office, with his surprise martial law bid rattling the nation for months and deepening political polarisation.

With the ruling, Yoon, 64, follows in the footsteps of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who was ousted in 2017 when the Constitutional Court upheld her impeachment over a corruption scandal.

Before taking the nation's highest office, Yoon began his career as a prosecutor in 1994, rising through the ranks to lead an investigation team into Park's corruption scandal that ultimately led to her ouster and subsequent imprisonment.

In 2019, he was appointed as the nation's top prosecutor under then South Korean President Moon Jae-in but clashed with the administration as he oversaw investigations into family members of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk.

Amid mounting pressure from the Moon administration, Yoon stepped down from his post in 2021, only to enter politics shortly after and win the presidential election in 2022 as the candidate for the conservative People Power Party.

Yoon's term was riddled with conflict with an uncooperative National Assembly dominated by the main Opposition Democratic Party (DP). Yoon exercised his presidential veto power against 25 Bills passed by the National Assembly.

Tensions with the DP appeared to reach an extreme in early December as the main Opposition introduced motions to impeach the country's top auditor and a senior prosecutor, with Yoon declaring martial law on December 3, which ultimately led to his downfall.