Chinese caught filming Naval base

[Anchor]

There has been another case of a Chinese national being caught filming classified facilities in South Korea.

This time, a couple in their 30s was apprehended while using a drone to film the naval base in Jeju.

Reporter Ko Min-joo has the story.

[Report]

On the afternoon of the 19th, a guard at the Jeju naval base spotted a drone in the sky.

The Navy immediately went on high alert, and the police arrested two Chinese individuals operating the drone near a port close to the base.

[Local Resident: "I saw a drone hovering over the beach, but I just passed by without thinking. It says 'drone prohibited area'... It was the first time I saw a drone there."]

The suspects were a couple in their 30s who had entered Jeju without a visa the day before.

During police questioning, they stated that they didn't know it was illegal, but they were found to have videos of the interior of the naval base.

The two Chinese individuals who illegally filmed the naval base using a drone have been charged with violating the Military Facilities Protection Act.

This is not the first time Chinese nationals have been caught filming sensitive national facilities with drones.

Chinese individuals were apprehended for filming the National Intelligence Service building in November last year, and Jeju International Airport in December.

In June of last year, a Chinese student was arrested for filming a U.S. aircraft carrier that had docked at the Busan naval base, becoming the first foreign national charged under general espionage laws.

[Kim Sang-ok/Professor of Military Studies at Wonkwang University: "When important national facilities are filmed, it can provide critical information to adversaries at any time, so punishments should be significantly strengthened to prevent this."]

From June of last year to May of this year, there have been a total of 11 cases of Chinese nationals being caught illegally filming sensitive national facilities.

This is KBS News, Ko Min-joo reporting.