Seoul, Dec 15 (NationPress) A former commander of the Capital Defence Command on Monday retracted his previous statement that former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered him to "drag out" lawmakers from the National Assembly during an unsuccessful attempt to impose martial law last December, according to officials.

Lee Jin-woo, who is believed to have played a significant role in Yoon's martial law declaration on December 3, 2024, made this reversal while serving as a witness in a hearing regarding charges of insurrection against the former president.

In May, Lee had stated during a court martial in Seoul that he found it "unusual" when the president purportedly commanded him to "kick and break down the door" to remove lawmakers, as reported by Yonhap News Agency.

He mentioned that he recalled Yoon saying "four people can take out one person each at the National Assembly building," adding that this memory resurfaced after being prompted by an adjutant.

However, during his testimony on Monday, Lee stated that his memory had been "distorted" by what he had seen and heard on television and YouTube.

"I did make those comments at that time," Lee said, explaining he found the account believable after watching television coverage, despite having no clear recollection of the events.

He also refuted the idea that Yoon used the word "arrest" in giving orders, suggesting he had "imagined" this term after being influenced by media.

Meanwhile, a special counsel team revealed that former President Yoon Suk Yeol began preparations for his brief imposition of martial law in or before October 2023, which was more than a year before the December 2024 declaration.

Special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team announced the conclusion as they shared results from their 180-day investigation into the martial law attempt, which resulted in the indictment of 24 individuals, including the ousted former president, former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, former National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong, and former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun.

The team asserted that Yoon instigated an insurrection via his martial law declaration to eliminate his political adversaries and consolidate power, contradicting his claims that the emergency order was intended to safeguard the nation from a reckless opposition party.

"Yoon Suk Yeol and others intended to cease political activities and National Assembly operations through military force, and to eliminate opposition forces by commandeering legislative and judicial powers through an emergency legislative body that would replace the National Assembly," Cho stated during a briefing at his office in southern Seoul.

“He declared martial law by depicting the political activities conducted at the National Assembly as anti-state acts and anti-state forces plotting an insurrection,” he further added.

The team revealed that they established that the former president had mentioned his "emergency powers" on numerous occasions to various individuals since the inception of his term in May 2022, which abruptly ended in April 2025 after the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment by the National Assembly.

For instance, during a dinner with leaders of the then-ruling People Power Party in November 2022, Yoon claimed he possessed emergency powers and would "wipe them all out" even if he was shot dead, according to the special counsel.

Then, prior to a military reshuffle in October 2023, Yoon and his advisors began earnest preparations for martial law by deliberating on whether to impose the decree prior to or following the reshuffle, and appointing some of the key figures now involved in the martial law case to high command positions, the team reported.

Yoon seemingly selected December 3 as the date for his martial law implementation to prevent interference from the United States, which was undergoing a governmental transition following Donald Trump’s election as president the previous month, they added.

No proof was found to substantiate rumors that a shaman was involved in determining the date.