This photo shows a signboard of the Seoul Western Dsitrict Office laying on a road on Sunday. (Yonhap)
This photo shows a signboard of the Seoul Western Dsitrict Office laying on a road on Sunday. (Yonhap)

President Yoon Suk Yeol was formally arrested on Sunday after a South Korean court issued a warrant that would put him in custody for up to six months as investigative authorities look into his martial law imposition in December.

According to the Seoul Western District Court, Yoon's release from prison could result in the destruction of evidence.

The ruling means Yoon, 64, will likely go through the booking process, including having his fingerprints and photograph taken as he becomes an inmate of the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province.

The court decision came after a warrant hearing presided over by Judge Cha Eun-kyung of the Seoul Western District Court that started at 2 p.m. Saturday. Yoon was accompanied by eight lawyers at the hearing.

Yoon is currently at the Seoul Detention Center after completing the five-hour hearing that ended at 6:50 p.m. Saturday.

The earlier court warrant, executed Wednesday, allowed investigators to detain Yoon for the past couple of days because of Yoon's failure to comply with the investigators' request to appear for questioning. The warrant, issued by the same court, was set to expire at 9:05 p.m. Saturday.

A motorcade believed to be carrying South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol is seen moving from the Seoul Western District Court to the Seoul Detention Center on Saturday.  (Pool photo via Yonhap)
A motorcade believed to be carrying South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol is seen moving from the Seoul Western District Court to the Seoul Detention Center on Saturday. (Pool photo via Yonhap)

With the new warrant, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, an independent body of prosecutors tasked with questioning the incumbent president, will have until Jan. 26 to question him, after which they are expected to refer the case to the prosecution service.

Prosecutors will then have 10 additional days to detain Yoon before charging him with insurrection.

Yoon has reportedly refused to answer questions during the CIO's questioning. His legal representatives have claimed that any process to incarcerate Yoon lacks legal grounds, though their legal appeals have been rejected.

Describing Yoon as the leader of an insurrection, the CIO looked into power abuse allegations related to Yoon's martial law declaration on Dec. 3 because the CIO is not authorized to investigate Yoon directly for insurrection.

The public prosecution has the authority to charge Yoon with insurrection. A sitting president is immune to indictment for any crime under the Constitution, but insurrection and treason are exceptions.