Court to decide on ex-president's arrest warrant without hearing
- 6 years ago
Turning now to the sticky legal situation former-president Lee Myung-bak finds himself in.
A court hearing set for this morning has been called off.
The hearing was set to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for the ex-South Korean leader over more than ten corruption charges.
However, with the absence of Lee and his lawyers, the court will now make the decision by examining the legal documents provided by Lee's legal team and the prosecution.
Let's turn to our Park Hee-jun, standing by at the Seoul Central District Court...
Hee-jun,... just walk us through what's happening...
Mark. The court has been reviewing the former president's documents since this morning.
They decided to proceed without the hearing, which was originally scheduled for 10:30 a.m., after Lee Myung-bak made it clear that he wasn't going to show.
This hearing would have basically been his last chance to defend himself prior to his potential arrest.
There could be various reasons why he decided to give up this opportunity.
It could be because he's preparing for what's to come later-- the actual trial.
Prosecutors previously revealed that the former president was surprised by the evidence they showed him during last week's interrogation.
And if prosecutors had questioned him on more details Lee might've been unprepared for,... he could've put himself at a disadvantage when comes to the trial,... which is a bigger deal than whether he's arrested or not.
He could also be protesting his stance that this entire investigation is political revenge by the liberal Moon Jae-in administration.
By refusing to appear he could be showing that he's not going to bend to what he thinks is a witchhunt.
They seem like two reasonable explanations for his no-show. Then how will things proceed during the examination?
Well, the court has decided to make its decision on the arrest warrant by going over his interrogation records and evidence.
Usually an arrest warrant is finalized after further questioning in the courtroom.
But because the defendant is absent,... the court will go over the documents and evidence submitted by the prosecutors and Lee Myung-bak's legal staff.
Because there's no face-to-face interrogation, the session could end earlier than expected.
The decision on the arrest warrant could be finalized by as early as tonight or Friday morning... so it'll be a nervous wait for the former president at his home in southern Seoul.
Back to you, Mark.
A court hearing set for this morning has been called off.
The hearing was set to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for the ex-South Korean leader over more than ten corruption charges.
However, with the absence of Lee and his lawyers, the court will now make the decision by examining the legal documents provided by Lee's legal team and the prosecution.
Let's turn to our Park Hee-jun, standing by at the Seoul Central District Court...
Hee-jun,... just walk us through what's happening...
Mark. The court has been reviewing the former president's documents since this morning.
They decided to proceed without the hearing, which was originally scheduled for 10:30 a.m., after Lee Myung-bak made it clear that he wasn't going to show.
This hearing would have basically been his last chance to defend himself prior to his potential arrest.
There could be various reasons why he decided to give up this opportunity.
It could be because he's preparing for what's to come later-- the actual trial.
Prosecutors previously revealed that the former president was surprised by the evidence they showed him during last week's interrogation.
And if prosecutors had questioned him on more details Lee might've been unprepared for,... he could've put himself at a disadvantage when comes to the trial,... which is a bigger deal than whether he's arrested or not.
He could also be protesting his stance that this entire investigation is political revenge by the liberal Moon Jae-in administration.
By refusing to appear he could be showing that he's not going to bend to what he thinks is a witchhunt.
They seem like two reasonable explanations for his no-show. Then how will things proceed during the examination?
Well, the court has decided to make its decision on the arrest warrant by going over his interrogation records and evidence.
Usually an arrest warrant is finalized after further questioning in the courtroom.
But because the defendant is absent,... the court will go over the documents and evidence submitted by the prosecutors and Lee Myung-bak's legal staff.
Because there's no face-to-face interrogation, the session could end earlier than expected.
The decision on the arrest warrant could be finalized by as early as tonight or Friday morning... so it'll be a nervous wait for the former president at his home in southern Seoul.
Back to you, Mark.