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Taiwanese duo given suspended prison sentences for filming U.S. base

Published: 07 Aug. 2025, 18:36

Military aircraft at the Osan Air Base (K-55) in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, on May 9 [YONHAP]

Two Taiwanese nationals indicted for illegally filming U.S. military aircraft and facilities in Korea have been given suspended prison sentences, judicial officials said Thursday.

The Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, branch of the Suwon District Court sentenced both of the suspects — one in his 40s and the other in his 60s — to 18 months, suspended for three years, on charges of violating the military base and facility protection laws in a ruling made on July 22, they said.

The two are accused of illegally photographing U.S. military facilities and equipment during an air show at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek on May 10. They reportedly told the police that they'd filmed the base out of curiosity.

“The defendants entered the military base, without the permission of the commander of the relevant unit, and filmed the military base and facilities. The nature of their crime is bad, but there is no evidence that they intended to detect military secrets,” Judge Woo Je-chun said in the ruling.

Yonhap