US soldier fled to North Korea after 'punching man at nightclub and kicking car'

19 July 2023 , 16:33

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Travis King, 23, is in the hands of North Korean authorities (Image: WSN 12 News)

The US soldier who fled across the border into North Korea was accused of punching a man in a nightclub and kicking a police car door.

Private 2nd Class Travis King, 23, had been imprisoned for assault in Seoul, South Korea's capital, and was set to be flown back to the US for disciplinary reasons when he made his escape across the border into the north. He had already passed through airport security before he fled.

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

US authorities have said he crossed over "wilfully, of his own volition."

The border between the two countries is highly militarised (AFP via Getty Images)

He laughed as he crossed the border, witnesses said. Court documents show he had damaged a police car and had been locked up at a detention facility in Seoul.

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Mr King was reportedly investigated for assault in September 2022 where he was suspected of punching a Korean national in a nightclub in Seoul.

He was also fined 5m won ($3,950) for "repeatedly kicking" the back door of a police car and screamed "foul language" at the officers trying to arrest him.

Officials said he was released on July 10 after serving two months in jail on assault charges, but did not elaborate.

Swedish tourist Mikaela Johansson, said on a Facebook post she was on the tour at the time as the solider.

“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.

King had joined a tour group before fleeing across the border (AP)

"It took everybody a second to react and grasp what had actually happened, then we were ordered into and through Freedom House and running back to our military bus."

According to US officials, he had just been released from prison where he had been held on assault charges and was facing military disciplinary actions in the US.

"A U.S. National on a JSA orientation tour crossed, without authorisation, the Military Demarcation Line into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," the United Nations Command said on Twitter. "We believe he is currently in DPRK custody and are working with our KPA counterparts to resolve this incident."

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said he believes the US soldier is in custody in North Korea.

"We're very early in this event and so there's a lot that we're still trying to learn," he said. "What we do know is that one of our service members who was on a tour wilfully and without authorization crossed the military demarcation line. We believe that he is in DPRK custody.

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