Turning now to the sticky legal situation former-president Lee Myung-bak finds himself in.<br />A court hearing set for this morning has been called off.<br />The hearing was set to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for the ex-South Korean leader over more than ten corruption charges.<br />However, with the absence of Lee and his lawyers, the court will now make the decision by examining the legal documents provided by Lee's legal team and the prosecution.<br />Let's turn to our Park Hee-jun, standing by at the Seoul Central District Court...<br />Hee-jun,... just walk us through what's happening...<br /><br /> Mark. The court has been reviewing the former president's documents since this morning.<br />They decided to proceed without the hearing, which was originally scheduled for 10:30 a.m., after Lee Myung-bak made it clear that he wasn't going to show.<br />This hearing would have basically been his last chance to defend himself prior to his potential arrest.<br />There could be various reasons why he decided to give up this opportunity.<br /> It could be because he's preparing for what's to come later-- the actual trial.<br />Prosecutors previously revealed that the former president was surprised by the evidence they showed him during last week's interrogation.<br />And if prosecutors had questioned him on more details Lee might've been unprepared for,... he could've put himself at a disadvantage when comes to the trial,... which is a bigger deal than whether he's arrested or not.<br />He could also be protesting his stance that this entire investigation is political revenge by the liberal Moon Jae-in administration. <br />By refusing to appear he could be showing that he's not going to bend to what he thinks is a witchhunt.<br /><br /> They seem like two reasonable explanations for his no-show. Then how will things proceed during the examination?<br /><br /> Well, the court has decided to make its decision on the arrest warrant by going over his interrogation records and evidence.<br /><br /> Usually an arrest warrant is finalized after further questioning in the courtroom.<br />But because the defendant is absent,... the court will go over the documents and evidence submitted by the prosecutors and Lee Myung-bak's legal staff.<br /> Because there's no face-to-face interrogation, the session could end earlier than expected.<br />The decision on the arrest warrant could be finalized by as early as tonight or Friday morning... so it'll be a nervous wait for the former president at his home in southern Seoul.<br />Back to you, Mark. <br />
