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park geun hye arrest

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Prosecutors asked for an arrest warrant for South Korea’s former president Park Geun-hye, for her role in a corruption scandal.

Earlier this month, Park Geun-hye lost her presidential immunity and was dismissed from her post when the constitutional court upheld a decision by parliament to impeach her.

She is accused of allowing her close friend Choi Soon-sil to allegedly extort money from big companies.

Park Geun-hye, 65, has denied the allegations.

She apologized to the public last week, before being questioned by authorities for 14 hours.

On March 27, South Korean prosecutors said in statement: “The case is very grave as the suspect has demonstrated acts of abuse of power by making companies give money and infringing on the freedom of corporate management by using powerful position and authority as president.”

They argue that evidence like computer hard drives might be destroyed if Park Geun-hye is not arrested.

Image source Wikimedia

Choi Soon-sil has been charged with bribery and corruption and is already on trial.

She is accused of using her presidential connections to pressure companies to give millions of dollars in donations to non-profit foundations she controlled.

Lee Jae-yong, the acting head of electronics conglomerate Samsung, was arrested for his role in the scandal.

Park Geun-hye is alleged to have been personally involved in this, and to have given Choi Soon-sil unacceptable levels of access to official documents.

Parliament voted to impeach Park Geun-hye in December 2016.

On March 10, the constitutional court ruled that Park Geun-hye’s actions “seriously impaired the spirit of… democracy and the rule of law”.

Judges said the president had broken the law by allowing Choi Soon-sil to meddle in state affairs, and had breached guidelines on official secrets by leaking numerous documents.

Park Geun-hye had “concealed completely Choi’s meddling in state affairs and denied it whenever suspicions over the act emerged and even criticized those who raised the suspicions,” the ruling said.

The Seoul Central District Court will now determine whether there are grounds to issue the arrest warrant for Park Geun-hye.

If it is issued, prosecutors will have up to 20 days to continue investigations and file charges against her, Reuters reports.

As president Park Geun-hye had enjoyed immunity and repeatedly refused to take part in questioning.

Now Park Geun-hye could face several charges, including abuse of power, coercion, bribery and leaking government secrets.

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Calls for ousted President Park Geun-hye’s arrest are growing in South Korea.

Park Geun-hye was forced from office on March 10, after judges unanimously upheld parliament’s decision to impeach her over her role in a corruption scandal involving close friend, Choi Soon-sil.

Despite the ruling, Park Geun-hye remains inside the presidential compound.

Thousands turned out for rallies in Seoul on March 11, a day after three people involved in protests died there.

Many were calling for the impeached president’s arrest, although a smaller number of her supporters also gathered in nearby streets.

There are fears the two sides may clash and there is a heavy police presence.

A spokeswoman for the protesters supporting the court’s decision, Choi In-sook, told Reuters they were demanding the arrest of Park Geun-hye.

President Park Geun-hye has issued an apology to the nation after three officials of the country’s intelligence agency were charged with fabricating evidence in a spying case

She has lost her presidential immunity and could face criminal charges.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s election commission announced a “free and fair” vote would be held by May 9 at the latest.

Currently, Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party is leading in the polls, with one survey putting him almost 22% ahead of his nearest rival, acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn, who is loyal to Park Geun-hye.

Hwang Kyo-ahn has called for calm, saying the government should remain stable to prevent internal conflict from spreading.

However, police are bracing themselves for more violence following the deaths of two of Park Geun-hye’s supporters on March 10.

A third person, aged 74, is understood to have had a heart attack during March 10 protests, and died on the next day, according to Reuters.

Park Geun-hye’s office said she would not be leaving the Blue House, South Korea’s presidential palace, on March 10 nor making any statement.

It is understood Park Geun-hye will not leave until her own home in Seoul is repaired and cleaned.

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