Graduate Student Faces Detention Hearing Over 'North Korean Drone Incursion'; Decision Expected Late Tonight

[The Financial News] A graduate student accused of sending a drone to North Korea and stoking tensions between the two Koreas has appeared for a detention hearing.
The Presiding Judge for Arrest Warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, Bu Dong-sik, began a pretrial detention hearing for Oh at 10:30 a.m. on the 26th. Oh faces charges including a general pro-enemy offense under the National Security Act, violations of the Aviation Safety Act, and violations of the Military Bases and Installations Protection Act.
Oh arrived at around 10:10 a.m. and entered the courtroom without answering reporters' questions, such as whether he admits to the pro-enemy charge or what points he plans to focus on in his explanation.
He is suspected of conducting four test flights of a drone programmed to take off from Ganghwa Island, Incheon, fly over Kaesong City and Pyongsan County in North Korea, and then return to Paju-si, Gyeonggi Province, in order to test its performance.
The joint military-police investigation task force believes Oh carried out these acts with the aim of gaining economic profit through his drone business. The task force has concluded that his actions provoked a condemnatory statement from North Korea and heightened tensions between the two Koreas, thereby putting the public at risk. It also determined that he exposed military-related information about South Korean forces, undermining military interests by affecting their readiness posture.
The task force requested an arrest warrant for Oh on the 19th, and prosecutors subsequently filed the request with the court.
The task force is investigating Oh and six other suspects, seven in total, and this is the first time it has moved to secure a suspect in custody.
The court's decision on whether to detain Oh is expected to be announced late tonight at the earliest.
theknight@fnnews.com Jung Kyung-soo Reporter