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EPA

The country's prosecution office has 48 hours to decide if it will formally arrest Choi Soon-sil

The woman at the centre of a political scandal threatening the

position of South Korea's president has been detained.
Choi Soon-sil, a long-time friend of President Park Geun-hye, is
accused of influence peddling and interfering in state affairs.
She was interrogated on Monday after apologising for an
"unpardonable crime".

Prosecutors have 48 hours to decide if they will formally arrest Ms

Choi.
She was placed under emergency detention late on Monday with
prosecutors saying they feared she may destroy evidence and was
at flight risk, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.
"She has fled overseas in the past, and she doesn't have a
permanent address in Korea, making her a flight risk," a prosecution
official told Yonhap. "She is also in an extremely unstable
psychological state."

Who is Choi Soon-sil?

Ms Choi, 60, is the daughter of shadowy religious cult leader,
Choi Tae-min, who was Ms Park's mentor until his death in 1994
Choi Tae-min was allegedly married six times, had multiple
pseudonyms and set up his own religious group, the Church of
Eternal Life
Ms Choi is said to have become friends with Ms Park after the
assassination of her father, Park Chung-hee, a former president
and military general
Ms Choi has a 20-year-old daughter, Chung Yoo-ra, a female
dressage rider who competed at the 2014 Asian Games
Could a friendship topple a president?
On Tuesday morning, a construction vehicle was driven into the
Seoul Central District Prosecutors' office, injuring a security guard
and destroying facilities.
The 45-year-old man said he committed the crime to "help Choi
Soon-sil die", after Ms Choi had on Monday told reporters that she
"committed a sin that deserves death", when she was on her way to
meet prosecutors.

AFP

The 45-year-old man said he committed the crime to "help Choi Soon-sil die"

Last week, Ms Park publicly apologised, admitting "certain

documents" had been shared with Ms Choi and she had been
allowed to edit political speeches.
"Choi advised me on expressions in my speeches and public
relations during the last presidential campaign and she continued to
help me for a certain period of time after I took office," Ms Park said.
"I deeply apologise to the people", she said, before bowing to the
camera.
That did little to suppress public anger and about 8,000 people
protested on Saturday, some calling for Ms Park's resignation.

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