A soldier who fled across the Demilitarized Zone from South Korea into North Korea where he was detained has been identified as Pvt. Travis King, according to the Army.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday said that King “willfully and without authorization” crossed the border — one of the most tensely guarded areas in the world — and that the Defense Department is closely monitoring and investigating the situation.
King, who is in his early 20s, had just been released from South Korean detention after being held on assault charges, according to multiple outlets, including The Associated Press. He was set to fly back to Fort Bliss, Texas — reportedly to face additional military discipline — but instead somehow ended up on a civilian tour of the border village of Panmunjom, a tourist attraction.
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North Korea-focused news outlet NK News reported that a woman on the same tour as King later posted on Facebook that the soldier laughed just before ditching the group and crossing the border.
“To our right, we hear a loud HA-HA-HA and one guy from OUR GROUP that has been with us all day runs in between two of the buildings and over to the other side!!” she wrote, according to NK News.
King’s fleeing to North Korea could put him in jeopardy, and is also likely to create a diplomatic fiasco for the U.S. as it works to…
