South Korean prosecutors push for arrest of ousted president

South Korean prosecutors said Monday that they want to arrest former President Park Geun-hye over the corruption allegations that triggered a huge political scandal and toppled her from power.

The move comes after prosecutors grilled Park for 14 hours last week over suspicions that she colluded with a jailed confidante to extort from companies and committed other wrongdoing when she was in office.

The Seoul prosecutors’ office said in a statement that it asked a local court to issue an arrest warrant for Park. The Seoul Central District Court said it would hold a hearing Thursday to decide on the prosecutors’ request.

The court is expected to ask Park to attend the hearing, and its decision on her fate will likely come by Friday.

An arrest is the next step before Park can be formally charged with crimes such as extortion, bribery and abuse of power. A bribery conviction alone is punishable by up to life in prison.