After more than 3 hours, Korean investigators still have not been able to execute the arrest warrant for Mr. Yoon Suk Yeol.

Investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office of Senior Officials (CIO) presented arrest warrants for Mr. Yoon and a search warrant for the residence, but PSS Director Park Chong-jun refused to allow them in, citing a ban on entering restricted security areas.

A police official said that some CIO prosecutors and investigators were confronting the PSS in front of the mansion area after breaking through the first and second fences.

The CIO has until January 6 to execute an arrest warrant for Mr. Yoon on charges of rebellion and abuse of power related to his brief imposition of martial law on December 3, 2024. However, protests by Mr. Yoon’s supporters outside the presidential compound have complicated the CIO’s efforts, and there is also the possibility of clashes with the presidential guard.

Thousands of supporters have gathered near the area in recent days to protest against Yoon’s impeachment and prevent his arrest. Some were forcibly dispersed by police and taken away. Observers say enforcing the arrest warrant on the weekend could be more difficult because more people would gather, while enforcing it on Jan. 6 would be too close to the deadline.

The CIO had previously teamed up with the police and the South Korean Ministry of National Defense’s investigative unit to conduct a joint investigation into Yoon’s imposition of martial law. The team carrying out the arrest warrant included 30 CIO members and 120 police officers, including 70 who were initially waiting outside the compound. Some of them were sent inside to assist in the effort.

The CIO requested the arrest warrant after Mr. Yoon refused all three summonses to participate in questioning. The agency also obtained a search warrant at the presidential residence. Mr. Yoon’s defense team called the warrants illegal and invalid and filed a motion to stop their execution.

On January 3, Yun Gap-geun, a lawyer in the group, told Yonhap that legal action would be taken against the CIO’s efforts. In the event that the PSS or Yoon’s supporters attempt to prevent the CIO from carrying out the arrest warrant, the police have vowed to arrest them for obstruction of official duty.

If Mr. Yoon is arrested, investigators plan to take him to the CIO headquarters in Gwacheon for questioning before detaining him at the Seoul Detention Center in nearby Uiwang. Once detained, the CIO will have 48 hours to request a further formal arrest warrant or release him.

More than three hours after anti-corruption officials entered the mansion, it was still unclear how the most serious political crisis South Korea has faced in decades would unfold, The Guardian reported.