PROSECUTORS in South Korea have said they want to arrest former president Park Geun-hye over the corruption allegations that toppled her from power.

Park was questioned for 14 hours last week over claims she colluded with her confidante Choi Soon-sil to extort from companies and committed other wrongdoing while in office. The request for an arrest warrant will be considered by court in Seoul on Thursday.

An arrest is the next step before Park can be formally charged with crimes such as extortion, bribery and abuse of power. She has denied any legal wrongdoing.

Prosecutors accuse Park of conspiring with Choi and a top presidential adviser to pressure 16 business groups, including Samsung, to donate 77.4 billion won (£55.5 million) to two non-profit organisations that Choi controlled and allegedly used for personal profit.