A court in Seoul has sentenced the former president of South Korea to 30 years in prison in the UAV case.

A Seoul court has sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Seok-yong to 30 years in prison in a case involving the launch of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) into North Korean airspace. This was reported on June 12 by the Yonhap news agency.

"On Friday, a Seoul court sentenced former President Yun Seok—yong to 30 years in prison, finding him guilty of organizing the penetration of drones into the DPRK in order to increase tension on the border and create the basis for declaring martial law in December 2024," the publication says.

A number of high-ranking military officials directly responsible for such operations were also sentenced to prison.

"In order to create conditions for the introduction of a state of emergency and martial law, the defendants used the pretext of a military operation to provoke a provocation from the DPRK," the court said.

Life cycle: Yoon Seok-yeol became the fifth convicted president of South Korea

The ex-leader received the maximum sentence for attempted military rebellion, and his ministers received dozens of years in prison.

On February 19, a court in South Korea sentenced Yoon Seok-young to life imprisonment. The former head of state was found guilty of leading the rebellion in 2024. According to the prosecution, he conspired with former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun and others to organize riots and undermine the constitution. The former defense minister was sentenced to 30 years in prison on the same day.

Yoon Seok-young was arrested on January 15, 2025 in a corruption case, which was an unprecedented case when investigative authorities detained a person who ruled the state. Later, the president was taken into custody, which caused discontent among his supporters, who staged pogroms in the country. On July 15, it became known that Yoon Seok-yeol was arrested again, as the court also feared that he might destroy evidence.