President Yoon Suk-yeol was arrested on charges of being the mastermind of a rebellion early on the 19th, leading supporters to storm the Seoul Western District Court and cause chaos. Police deployed over 1,400 forces, including riot units, to suppress the protesters, arresting 46 people in the act. The order around the Western District Court has largely been restored.
At around 2:50 a.m. that day, Director General Cha Eun-kyung of the Western District Court issued an arrest warrant for President Yoon, citing concerns that evidence might be destroyed.
Supporters of President Yoon gathered in the area of the Western District Court the day before, with a maximum of 44,000 people (according to unofficial police estimates) mobilizing to prevent his arrest. They did not disperse even after President Yoon left the Western District Court at 7:33 p.m. the previous day and moved to the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, continuing to occupy all ten lanes of the Mapo-daero in front of the Western District Court.
Upon receiving news that an arrest warrant had been issued for President Yoon, they became extremely agitated and broke through police barricades at the back entrance of the court. They forced their way into the court around 3:21 a.m., smashing the main entrance and glass windows with shields and plastic chairs seized from police. Some even sprayed extinguishers at the police.
Supporters of President Yoon pushed against the police, shouting harsh remarks and curses like, "Kill them all." They also sought out Director General Cha Eun-kyung, who issued the warrant, demanding, "Judge X, come out."
The police began large-scale interventions approximately 11 minutes after the intrusion, around 3:32 a.m. They deployed over 1,400 riot police equipped with protective gear and batons. After about 1 hour and 40 minutes, they cleared the intruders from inside the Western District Court, and after about 3 hours and 30 minutes, they also removed the protesters occupying the road in front of the court.
During this process, the 46 people who stormed the Western District Court were arrested in the act. Including 40 others arrested earlier for crossing the court's wall before the arrest warrant was issued for President Yoon, the total number detained over the two days reached 86.