Former ROK president arrested

SEOUL - Former president Park Geun-hye of South Korea was arrested and jailed early Friday as a Seoul court approved the request from prosecutors following her impeachment earlier this month over a corruption scandal embroiling her.

The arrest warrant, which was sought by prosecutors earlier this week, was issued by the court following her Thursday hearing that lasted for almost nine hours, the longest-ever in the country's history.

Park became the third South Korean former leader to be taken into custody. The country's first female president became the first leader to be ousted through impeachment, which was approved by the constitutional court in a ruling on March10.

A convoy of vehicles, including a black sedan carrying Park,entered a detention facility near Seoul after the Seoul Central District Court granted prosecutors'request to arrest her.

Many Park supporters waved national fl ags and shouted "president" as Park's car entered the facility.

Prosecutors can detain her for up to 20 days before formally charging her, meaning she will likely be in jail while her case is heard. A district court normally issues a ruling within six months of an indictment.

Prosecutors accuse Park of colluding with a confi dante to extort big businesses, take a bribe from one of the companies and commit other wrongdoings.The allegations led millions of South Koreans to protest in the streets every weekend for months before lawmakers impeached her in December and the Constitutional Court ruled in March to formally remove her from office.

South Korea will hold an election in May to choose Park's successor.

Prosecutors could have charged Park without arresting her. But they said they wanted to arrest her because the allegations against her were "grave" and because other suspects involved the scandal have already been arrested.

The Seoul court said it decided to approve Park's arrest because it believes key allegations against her were confi rmed and there were worries that she may try to destroy evidence.

A day earlier, as Park left her hearing, hundreds of supporters,many elderly citizens, gathered at her private Seoul home. They wept, chanted slogans and tried to block Park's car.

In the coming weeks, prosecutors are expected to formally charge Park with extortion,bribery and abuse of power. Her bribery conviction alone is punishable by the minimum 10 years in prison and the maximum life imprisonment in South Korea.