The father of a 30-year-old graduate student, identified only as Mr. Oh, has filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) regarding his son’s arrest. The younger Oh faces charges for allegedly flying drones into North Korean airspace multiple times. The father claims the allegations are excessive and that his son’s rights were violated during detention.
NHRC sources reported on March 20 that Mr. Oh’s father submitted a formal complaint on March 18 against investigators and officials of the military-police joint task force (TF).
In his statement, the father argued that the TF had overreached by applying general treason laws without clear legal grounds, severely infringing on his son’s constitutional rights and ability to defend himself. He maintained that the incident was merely a naive and imprudent act stemming from his son’s pursuit of research and business opportunities for a university startup.
The complaint further asserts that escalating this to a national security threat involving hidden actors is an excessive application of the law. The father criticized the TF for distorting the general treason statute based on speculative reasoning that the drone flights provoked North Korea and heightened security tensions.
Addressing the allegations of photographing military installations, the father stated that his son had employed a global positioning system (GPS) based avoidance system and had proven the unintentional nature of any such incidents. He claimed the TF disregarded this evidence and proceeded with their investigation based on conjecture, despite the lack of confirmatory footage in the videos his son provided.
Regarding the detention process, the father argued that using his son’s international background – including U.S. residency, foreign contacts, language skills, and family ties – as grounds for flight risk was discriminatory and violated his human rights.
The complaint reportedly calls for a thorough investigation into alleged human rights violations, excessive investigative measures, and the overapplication of charges throughout the detention process.
Mr. Oh is accused of conducting four drone test flights, with programmed routes from Incheon, through North Korea’s Kaesong and Pyongsan counties, before returning to Paju in Gyeonggi Province.
The TF believes Mr. Oh’s actions were motivated by potential economic gains through a drone-related business venture.
On February 19, the TF sought an arrest warrant for Mr. Oh on charges of general treason, violations of aviation safety laws, and breaches of the Military Facilities Protection Act. The Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office filed the warrant request the following day. Although Mr. Oh petitioned for a review of his detention on the 9th, the court rejected his appeal on March 11.