Court sentences former President Yoon to 30 years over Pyongyang drone operation
A Seoul court found former President Yoon Suk Yeol guilty of ordering a Pyongyang drone mission to help justify his 2024 martial law declaration.
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted of ordering a drone operation in Pyongyang in an attempt to create a pretext for his Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration.
The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoon to 30 years in prison on Friday on charges of aiding the enemy and abuse of authority.
Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who was indicted alongside Yoon, was also sentenced to 30 years in prison. Former Defense Counterintelligence Commander Yeo In-hyung received a 15-year prison sentence.
Gen. Kim Yong-dae, a former Drone Operations Command chief who allegedly directed the operation on the ground, was given a three-year prison sentence with five years of probation.
The court found Yoon and the other defendants guilty of ordering the Drone Operations Command to carry out a drone mission in Pyongyang around October 2024 in an effort to provoke North Korea and create grounds for declaring martial law.
“The defendants sought to induce a North Korean provocation by exploiting the appearance of a military operation for the purpose of creating conditions for martial law,” the court said.
BY SHIN HYE-YEON [[email protected]]
