A local court has issued a warrant to arrest Yoo Hyuk-kee, a central figure in the scandal surrounding the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster who was extradited from the United States nine years after the tragedy.

The Incheon District Court granted a warrant to formally arrest Yoo on Saturday, citing the risks of flight and destroying evidence.

The Incheon District Prosecutors Office made the warrant request on Friday on embezzlement charges after Yoo was taken into custody earlier in the day.

Yoo is the second son of the late Yoo Byung-eun, whose family controlled the Chonghaejin Marine Company, the operator of the Sewol ferry.

He is accused of embezzling and funneling some 25 billion won into his personal account or overseas corporations in collusion with his father's close aides.

The Justice Ministry had requested his extradition from the United States, and he arrived in the country on Friday as the last of four people to be brought home after fleeing abroad following the Sewol sinking.