The man central to blocking investigators from arresting South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol has come under the spotlight himself in the political crisis sparked by Yoon's brief declaration of martial law last month.

Blocked by bodyguards, officials retreated after several hours without serving a court warrant to hold President Yoon Suk Yeol for questioning on insurrection charges.

South Korea’s presidential guards and military troops prevented authorities from arresting Yoon Suk Yeol, the impeached president, on Friday in a tense six-hour stand-off inside his compound in the heart of Seoul.

South Korean investigators again asked the country's acting president on Saturday to order the presidential security service to comply with an arrest warrant for impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol.

There were more than 100 police officers and they were armed with a warrant - but South Korean authorities failed to arrest suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol after a six-hour deadlock outside his home.

South Korean investigators have suspended efforts to enforce an arrest warrant for impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol on January 3 after a standoff took place between investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) and around 200 soldiers and members of the presidential security outside Yoon’s residence.