S. Korea investigation team raids civilian suspects & homes, offices

South Korea's joint military-police investigation team executed search and seizure warrants against three civilian suspects in connection with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s allegations of South Korean drone incursions.



Citing the National Police Agency's National Office of Investigation, Yonhap said investigators began searches of the suspects' residences and offices at 8 a.m. local time on suspicion of violating the Aviation Safety Act.



The suspects are believed to include a man suspected of manufacturing the drone and a graduate student who claimed that he flew it.



As alumni of a private university in Seoul, the two suspects launched a drone manufacturing start-up with university support.



Investigators also searched locations at the university linked to the company and seized their mobile phones.



The report said a third individual, a person who worked at the drone firm as a "director in charge of DPRK-related operations," may also have been among those searched, though police declined to disclose the identities of the three suspects.



Earlier this month, the DPRK accused South Korea of violating its airspace by flying a drone on Jan. 4.



South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday ordered thorough investigations into the case.