The team investigating the December 3 martial law declaration will request the pretrial detention of former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae a second time after a court threw out its first attempt.

Assistant counselor Park Ji-young said in a news briefing Wednesday that although the court's decision deserved respect, but was difficult to accept considering the gravity of the justice minister's constitutional duty.

The Seoul Central District Court had ruled against the former minister's detention earlier the same day, saying the prosecution had not provided sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the defendant was likely to destroy evidence or constituted a flight risk.

The former minister stands accused of convening a meeting of senior ministry officials soon after former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration, during which prosecutors say he instructed the authorities to consider dispatching prosecutors to the joint investigation headquarters created under military command and inspect the available capacity of detention facilities.

Prosecutors first requested that Park Sung-jae be detained pending trial last Thursday, arguing that he had played a key role in the Dec. 3 declaration.