TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — New details have emerged regarding the U.S. soldier who willfully entered North Korea without authorization.
A witness told Sky News that she initially thought the soldier was doing it as a TikTok stunt.
Travis King, 23, was allegedly released from a South Korean prison recently and was being escorted to the airport outside of the capital city, Seoul, for further disciplinary action in the States.
But rather than going to his gate, King escaped and joined a tourist group headed for the border, NBC reported.
A witness in the tour group told the Associated Press that as the tour was nearing the end, she noticed a man “running what looked like full gas towards the North Korean side.”
The country remains silent on the soldier’s status, as King remains in North Korean custody.
“Our primary concern at this time is ascertaining his well-being and getting to the bottom of exactly what happened,” White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday.
King has had a history of run-ins with Korena police. He has shown an unwillingness to cooperate when apprehended and has shouted profanities at police.
Back in September 2022, King was reported to South Korean police for punching a Korean national at a nightclub. In February 2023, he was fined nearly $4,000 on charges of damaging public property. He was also accused of kicking a police patrol car, causing hundreds of dollars in damage.
King has served in the U.S. Army since January 2021 and is the first known soldier to defect to North Korea in over 50 years.
The U.S. has nearly 28,000 troops in South Korea, as the relationship with the North remains in conflict.
North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles heading east on Wednesday morning. It is unknown if these missile launches were related.
