A graduate student in his 30s surnamed Oh, accused of flying a drone into North Korea and raising inter-Korean tensions, has been indicted and will stand trial in detention. The head of the drone manufacturing corporation where Oh served as a director, among others, was indicted as well.
The Public Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Director General Yoon Su-jeong) said on the 24th that it indicted Oh on charges of general aiding the enemy and violating the Aviation Safety Act, and indicted without detention the corporation's head, a person surnamed Jang, and the director for North Korea affairs, a person surnamed Kim.
According to prosecutors, for business purposes, from Sept. 27 last year to Jan. 4 this year, they was found to have evaded our military's air defense surveillance and, on four occasions in total, flown a civilian drone without authorization across the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) over the Kaesong area in North Korea while filming video.
The drones they flew on Sept. 27 last year and Jan. 4 this year failed to return and crashed in North Korea. North Korea recovered the drone bodies and SD cards, analyzed the data, and on Jan. 10 this year issued a statement saying, "South Korea infiltrated a drone. This is an act of violating sovereignty and a provocation."
The military and police formed a joint investigation task force (TF), investigated Oh and others, and forwarded the case to prosecutors on the 6th of this month. However, among the matters referred, prosecutors issued a "no charges" disposition on the alleged violation of the Protection of Military Bases and Installations Act, saying no objective evidence was found to prove the filming of our military bases, etc.
Prosecutors said, "In court, we will thoroughly prove that the unauthorized intrusion of a civilian drone across the MDL and its flight in North Korean territory is a national security crime that infringes on the Republic of Korea's military interests, which are preparing for various military provocations such as North Korea's low-altitude infiltration threats."