Prosecutors seek arrest warrant for former Supreme Court chief justice over power abuse scandal
- 5 years ago
'사법농단 정점' 양승태 전 대법원장 구속영장 청구
Prosecutors have sought an arrest warrant for a former Supreme Court chief justice.
This comes after Yang Sung-tae has been grilled by investigators since last week for his alleged involvement in a massive power abuse scandal.
Kim Mok-yeon has the latest on the probe.
Just a week after first summoning Korea's former Supreme Court Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae for questioning, prosecutors have now filed an arrest warrant against the former head of the judiciary.
The team of prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office sought a warrant against Yang on Friday, explaining that the allegations against him are serious crimes that damage the very foundations of the law
They also claimed that with Yang still flatly denying all allegations against him, they decided to file the warrant as there is a possibility for him to destroy evidence.
Yang, who served as chief justice from 2011 to 2017, is accused of some 40 offenses including using trials as bargaining chips in dealings with the Park Geun-hye administration to achieve his long-envisioned plan of establishing a separate court of appeals.
Those trials include ones filed by Korean plaintiffs against Japanese firms that forced them into labor during World War 2.
He allegedly orchestrated the delay in the deliberation of the suit to curry favor with former President Park, who was seeking amicable relations with Tokyo.
Yang is also accused of creating a blacklist of judges based on their political leanings, and of leaking confidential information.
With the latest decision, Yang now becomes the first former Supreme Court head whose arrest will be reviewed by his junior judge in the judicial department's 71-year history.
The court is expected to give its ruling on whether the ex-chief judge will be arrested or not by as early as Tuesday.
Kim Mok-yeon, Arirang News.
Prosecutors have sought an arrest warrant for a former Supreme Court chief justice.
This comes after Yang Sung-tae has been grilled by investigators since last week for his alleged involvement in a massive power abuse scandal.
Kim Mok-yeon has the latest on the probe.
Just a week after first summoning Korea's former Supreme Court Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae for questioning, prosecutors have now filed an arrest warrant against the former head of the judiciary.
The team of prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office sought a warrant against Yang on Friday, explaining that the allegations against him are serious crimes that damage the very foundations of the law
They also claimed that with Yang still flatly denying all allegations against him, they decided to file the warrant as there is a possibility for him to destroy evidence.
Yang, who served as chief justice from 2011 to 2017, is accused of some 40 offenses including using trials as bargaining chips in dealings with the Park Geun-hye administration to achieve his long-envisioned plan of establishing a separate court of appeals.
Those trials include ones filed by Korean plaintiffs against Japanese firms that forced them into labor during World War 2.
He allegedly orchestrated the delay in the deliberation of the suit to curry favor with former President Park, who was seeking amicable relations with Tokyo.
Yang is also accused of creating a blacklist of judges based on their political leanings, and of leaking confidential information.
With the latest decision, Yang now becomes the first former Supreme Court head whose arrest will be reviewed by his junior judge in the judicial department's 71-year history.
The court is expected to give its ruling on whether the ex-chief judge will be arrested or not by as early as Tuesday.
Kim Mok-yeon, Arirang News.