Former President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea was convicted on Friday for orchestrating military drone flights over North Korea. This act was aimed at escalating tensions between the two nations to create a pretext for declaring martial law.
Yoon, who is 65 years old, has been facing various criminal charges across eight separate trials since his impeachment and removal from office last year. His impeachment stemmed from illegally imposing martial law in late 2024. Earlier, a court found him guilty of masterminding an insurrection, leading to a life sentence in February.
The court sentenced him to 30 years in prison for the drone operation. This was the second-most-serious charge against him, categorized as “undermining South Korea’s military interests or providing military benefit to an enemy state.” This crime carries a potential maximum sentence of life imprisonment and marks the first time such a charge has been brought against a former South Korean president.
A three-judge panel at the Seoul Central District Court determined that Yoon and his collaborators sent drones across the inter-Korean border—the world’s most heavily fortified frontier—late in 2024. Their aim was to provoke military tensions with North Korea, which Yoon planned to use to justify a martial law declaration.
A special prosecutor called the drone operation “an anti-state and anti-national crime” and sought a 30-year sentence for Yoon.
Two of Yoon’s associates involved in the drone operation were also convicted and sentenced on Friday. Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun received a 30-year sentence, and former counterintelligence commander Lt. Gen. Yeo In-hyong was sentenced to 15 years. Both had already been given substantial sentences for their involvement in Yoon’s martial law actions.