Court set to rule on ex-President Yoon's drone infiltration case

A court was set to deliver its verdict Friday in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's trial on charges of ordering drone infiltration into North Korea in an attempt to provoke the communist state and thus create reasons for his martial law declaration in December 2024.

The Seoul Central District Court was scheduled to hold the sentencing hearing at 10:30 a.m. for Yoon, who is accused of ordering the operation in October 2024 to provoke Pyongyang and use it as a pretext for his Dec. 3, 2024, declaration of martial law.

Special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team earlier demanded a 30-year prison term for Yoon on charges that include benefiting the enemy and abuse of power.

Cho's team has argued the alleged operation led to heightened military tensions between the Koreas and resulted in the leak of military secrets.

The court will also sentence others indicted in the case — former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun; Yeo In-hyung, former head of the Defense Counterintelligence Command; and Kim Yong-dae, former chief of the Drone Operations Command.

Yoon, currently in custody, faces multiple criminal trials linked to his botched martial law bid.

In February, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for leading an insurrection through his martial law declaration. He has appealed that ruling.

Yonhap