A central court in Seoul sentenced former President Yoon Suk-yeol to 30 years in prison for ordering drone missions into North Korea in October 2024, deliberately provoking and increasing tensions along the border, intending to use this as a pretext to declare martial law in December 2024.
The Seoul central court issued its verdict today (12 Jun 2025 GMT+7), aligning with the request of special prosecutor Cho Eun-sook, who sought imprisonment for former President Yoon on charges of benefiting the enemy and abusing power.
The court reviewed evidence and concluded that Yoon ordered the drone operations in October 2024 with the objective of provoking the North Korean government and deliberately escalating international tensions, aiming to use the anticipated crisis as an urgent justification to declare martial law on 3 Dec 2024.
On the day martial law was declared, Yoon claimed he was defending the country against "anti-state forces" sympathetic to North Korea. However, it later became clear that his decision was driven by domestic political turmoil, sparking massive public protests and eventually forcing him to revoke the order before being impeached by the National Assembly and prosecuted.
Besides the former president, the court also sentenced several co-conspirators involved in the operation. Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun received a 30-year sentence for rebellion and abuse of power, a harsher penalty than the 25 years requested by the special prosecutor.
Former Commander of the Military Counterintelligence Unit Yeo In-hyung was sentenced to 15 years, while former Drone Operations Commander Kim Yong-dae received a 3-year sentence, suspended for 5 years.
In its statement, the panel of judges said, "The defendants used the pretext of military operations to deliberately provoke North Korea with the aim of creating an emergency situation to justify declaring martial law." They added that although the three military officials contributed to provoking North Korea and increasing the risk of military clashes, Yoon Suk-yeol, as the national leader, bore "the greatest responsibility" for the incident.
During the trial, Yoon’s defense team argued that the drone incursions were a "legitimate" response to North Korea’s repeated launches of hundreds of trash balloons containing filth and waste across the border into South Korea throughout 2024.
Although both Koreas have used propaganda balloons since the Korean War era, tensions escalated sharply in 2024 when North Korea accused South Korea of deploying drones to drop anti-regime leaflets over Pyongyang’s center, threatening this could lead to war. The court’s Friday ruling clearly identified Yoon as the mastermind behind these drone flights, expecting North Korea to retaliate and thereby create a crisis.
The 30-year prison sentence in this drone case is the latest punishment for Yoon Suk-yeol, who is currently detained and faces multiple other trials related to the failed martial law declaration.
In February 2025, Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment for leading an insurrection, a verdict now under appeal. Additionally, he received a separate 5-year sentence for abusing power and obstructing his own arrest.
Yoon’s attempt to impose martial law and the ensuing protests caused months of political turmoil and a power vacuum in South Korea, leading to new elections. The result was a decisive victory for Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, the former establishment party, who now leads the country.