Court spokesperson Cheon Jae-hyun told reporters that Yoon’s legal team have requested to call “at least 24 individuals” as witnesses, including election-related officials.
Yoon, who remains head of state, is being held in a detention centre pending a criminal probe on charges of insurrection.
Yoon and his legal team have sought to justify his attempt to suspend civilian rule as a necessary measure due to election fraud, after the opposition won parliamentary elections by a landslide last year.
According to pool reporters, he appeared in court wearing a suit – not his standard-issue prison uniform, which he has been required to wear since he was formally arrested Sunday.
Yoon’s legal team said he wanted to “personally appear to explain the circumstances surrounding the declaration of martial law”.
Shortly after the hearing, the Corruption Investigation Office probing the martial law declaration said it had sent six investigators and a prosecutor to the detention centre to question Yoon, who has been refusing to submit to their questioning.
However the van escorting Yoon was seen travelling to a hospital in Seoul, instead of the detention centre.
The justice ministry said Yoon went for “a medical treatment”, based on results of a medical exam the previous day.
“ENTIRELY INCOMPREHENSIBLE”
If the court rules against Yoon, he will lose the presidency and elections will be called within 60 days.
The lawyers prosecuting the case, who were selected by the parliament, slammed the comments made by Yoon and his lawyers as “largely contradictory, irrational, and unclear, making them entirely incomprehensible”.
“If they continue to evade responsibility as they did today, it will only work against them in the impeachment trial and cause even greater disappointment among the public,” they added.
Yoon stayed away from the first two hearings last week, but the trial – which could last months – will continue even if he is absent.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/south-korea-yoon-suk-yeol-court-impeachment-hearing-4886021
