SEOUL, June 12. /Dunyo IA/. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison, finding him guilty of abuse of power and actions in the enemy's interest, reports Dunyo IA correspondent, citing with the South Korean news agency “Yonhap”.

The court established that in October 2024, Yoon Suk Yeol ordered a drone infiltration operation into the territory of North Korea with the aim of provoking cross-border tensions between the two countries. According to the court's findings, the anticipated escalation of the situation was intended to serve as a justification for declaring martial law on December 3, 2024.

The court's ruling states that the defendants intended to utilize psychological warfare methods to provoke North Korea and engineer a national security crisis that could justify the imposition of martial law.

Former South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun was also sentenced to 30 years in prison for his involvement in the operation. The former head of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, Yeo In-hyung, received a 15-year prison sentence. Meanwhile, the former commander of the Drone Operations Command, Kim Yong-dae, was sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for a five-year probationary period.

The court noted that the actions of the individuals involved undermined public trust in the country's leadership and the armed forces, as military resources were utilized not for lawful purposes, but to achieve personal political objectives.

Yoon Suk-yeol's defense team announced its intention to appeal the verdict, insisting that the drone deployment was a legitimate military operation in response to North Korea's launch of trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea in 2024.

The court, however, concluded that the operation compromised South Korea's security interests, as it exposed the country's military capabilities and contributed to enhancing the combat readiness of the DPRK.

This is not the first conviction against the former president. In February, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in a treason case related to the imposition of martial law. This verdict has also been appealed.

Photo by “News1” television channel