South Korea court sentences ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison

Court finds former leader guilty of abuse of power and aiding the enemy over alleged drone incursion linked to failed 2024 martial law plan.

SEOUL: A South Korean court on Friday sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison, in a landmark ruling tied to allegations that he ordered or was involved in a military drone incursion into Pyongyang.

The Seoul Central District Court found Yoon guilty of abuse of power and aiding the enemy, stating that he had conspired from the outset in the October 2024 drone operation over North Korean territory.

The court ruled that the operation was linked to an attempt to create a pretext for imposing martial law, which ultimately failed.

Yoon has consistently denied all wrongdoing. His legal team maintained that he neither ordered nor approved the drone operation, arguing instead that it was a separate defensive response to months of North Korea sending balloons filled with waste across the border.

Prosecutors had earlier sought a 30-year sentence in April, strengthening the case that led to Friday’s verdict.

The ruling adds to a series of major legal setbacks for the ousted conservative leader, who previously served as South Korea’s top prosecutor.

In February, another court reportedly sentenced Yoon to life imprisonment after convicting him of leading an insurrection linked to the martial law attempt, deepening one of the most severe political crises in South Korea’s modern history.

Yoon was removed from office last year after the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment, a decision that triggered a snap presidential election won by liberal leader Lee Jae Myung.

Already in custody, Yoon retains the right to appeal Friday’s lower court decision, as his legal battles continue amid ongoing political and judicial fallout from the failed martial law attempt.