US soldier facing military disciplinary actions flees to North Korea while touring a border village

UPDATE:

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. officials say an American soldier who fled across the heavily armed border from South Korea into North Korea had been facing military disciplinary actions.

Two U.S. officials say Private 2nd Class Travis King had just been released from a South Korean prison where he’d been held on assault charges and was facing military disciplinary actions in the U.S.

King was escorted to the airport to be returned to Fort Bliss, Texas, but left and joined a tour of the Korean border village of Panmunjom, where he ran across the border.

At a Pentagon press conference, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin did not name King, but confirmed that a U.S. service member was likely in North Korean custody.

ORIGINAL STORY:

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. officials say an American soldier crossed the heavily armed border from South Korea into North Korea “willfully and without authorization,” becoming the first American detained in the North in nearly five years.

The crossing comes during heightened tensions over the North’s nuclear program.

There are no details about why or how the soldier crossed the border or whether he was on duty.

Five U.S. officials spoke about the crossing on the condition of anonymity ahead of a public announcement.

Cases of Americans or South Koreans defecting to North Korea are rare, though 30,000 North Koreans have fled to South Korea to avoid political oppression and economic difficulties since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.