President Yoon Suk Yeol’s defense team has cast doubt on the credibility of the head of the National Police Agency, Cho Ji-ho, by suggesting he may have been delirious when the prosecution questioned him about the December 3 martial law incident. 

During the tenth hearing in Yoon’s impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court on Thursday, one of Yoon’s lawyers, Lee Dong-chan, asked Cho whether he became delirious during the interrogation. 

The lawyer claimed that Cho, who has blood cancer, saw his white blood cell count drop sharply below normal levels after contracting pneumonia while under questioning by prosecutors. 

After saying he understood that Cho’s health had worsened at that time, Lee asked Cho if his statements to the prosecution were based on a clear memory of what happened on December 3. 

The police chief replied that he did not suffer delirium but did have difficulty focusing due to exhaustion after the long hours of questioning. 

Cho earlier told investigators that the president instructed him to arrest lawmakers shortly after declaring martial law.