SEOUL - FORMER South Korean president Roh Moo-Hyun leapt to his death during a mountain hike after sending his bodyguard away on an errand, police said on Wednesday, as tens of thousands joined in mourning for him.

Roh jumped from a cliff known as Owl Rock on Saturday after sending his guard on an errand to a nearby temple, Lee Woon-Wu, commissioner of the Gyeongsangnam provincial police agency, told journalists.

Roh, who had been questioned as a suspect in a corruption scandal, jumped off the mountain overlooking his home at Bongha near the southeast coast. He left a suicide note on his computer.

The former liberal leader was questioned by prosecutors on April 30 about some US$6 million (S$8.7 million) which his family members received from a wealthy shoe manufacturer. The investigation tarnished his legacy as an anti-corruption fighter, even though he did not admit personal wrongdoing.

Despite his low popularity ratings when he ended his five-year term in 2008, Roh's suicide has sparked a wave of national mourning and a heavy police presence to forestall protests against his conservative successor. Some of Roh's supporters accuse the current government of ordering a politically motivated probe into Roh's affairs, a charge it denies.

Roh's funeral will be held on Friday in the courtyard of the imposing Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul. His body will be cremated after the funeral and the ashes will be taken for burial near his retirement home.

More than 700,000 people have visited altars nationwide since Saturday to pay tribute to the former head of state, according to estimates from police and the home affairs ministry.

Mourners on Wednesday included three of Roh's former aides who had been detained on bribery allegations. They were released on parole to take part.

Business leaders, including Hyundai Motor chairman Chung Moong-Koo and Samsung Electronics vice chairman Lee Yoon-Woo, have also paid their respects to the man who was often at odds with them while in office.

At a mourning site outside the Deoksu Palace, another of Seoul's grand former royal residences, crowds bowed deeply and laid white chrysanthemums in front of portraits of a smiling Roh on two altars. -- AFP