SEOUL, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korean police ended their hours-long attempt to raid the presidential office Wednesday as the presidential security service refused to cooperate with their investigation into President Yoon Suk-yeol's alleged insurrection through imposing martial law last week.
Instead, Yoon's office voluntarily submitted "very limited" documents and materials to the police, Yonhap news agency reported.
Shortly before noon, 18 police investigators were dispatched to the presidential office compound to secure material related to the martial law decree, including records of a cabinet meeting held shortly before Yoon announced the martial law on Dec. 3, according to the National Office of Investigation (NOI) of the National Police Agency.
However, the investigators did not enter the presidential office building as talks were ongoing with security service agents over how the raid would be conducted.
A warrant for the search listed Yoon as the suspect, and the president's office, the cabinet meeting room and the presidential security service and the joint chiefs of staff building as subjects of the raid.
Police also raided the offices of the National Police Agency (NPA), the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) and the National Assembly Police Guards Wednesday.
The search followed the emergency arrests of NPA chief Cho Ji-ho and SMPA chief Kim Bong-sik in the early hours of the day.
Meanwhile, former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun tried to commit suicide while being held at a detention facility on charges of insurrection, but he is currently in stable condition, the Justice Ministry said Wednesday.
Kim was found trying to hang himself with a rope made from tying together innerwear inside a bathroom at the Seoul Dongbu Detention Center in eastern Seoul at 11:52 p.m. local time Tuesday, shortly before a court issued an arrest warrant for him, the ministry said.
Following the unsuccessful attempt, Kim is being held in a protective cell and his health remains stable, according to Shin Yong-hae, the head of the correctional center.
Kim, who had already been detained since Sunday, was placed under formal arrest early Wednesday on charges of helping President Yoon stage an insurrection through his short-lived imposition of martial law.
Earlier on Wednesday, prosecutors raided the headquarters of the Army Special Warfare Command, which was key in deploying troops to the National Assembly building on Dec. 3 to try to stop lawmakers from repealing the martial law decree, local media said.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) said Wednesday that it will try to arrest Yoon with and without an arrest warrant if conditions are met.
"We are conducting a thorough investigation, and we will review the question of arrest," Oh Dong-woon, head of the investigative body, said during a parliamentary legislation committee meeting, claiming to have "plenty of will" to arrest Yoon over his short-lived declaration of martial law.
The country's police, prosecution and the CIO have been investigating rebellion charges against Yoon, cabinet members and military commanders.
In a further development on Wednesday, the NOI, the CIO and the defense ministry's investigation headquarters launched a joint investigation team to probe Yoon's declaration of martial law.
The joint team was quoted as saying that the three agencies will cooperate by utilizing each strength, such as the NOI's investigation experience and capability, the CIO's legal expertise and right to seek arrest warrants, and the defense ministry's military expertise.
National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik said Wednesday he has invoked the authority to conduct a parliamentary probe into Yoon's martial law decree.
Speaking to reporters, Woo said that the parliamentary probe is needed to secure a "public testimony" from Yoon over the Dec. 3 imposition of martial law, calling for a prompt formation of a special committee to handle such investigation. ■
