North Korea to expel U.S. soldier Travis King over illegal border
crossing
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[September 27, 2023]
By Hyonhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea has decided to expel American soldier
Travis King who it said has admitted to illegal intrusion into the
country and was "disillusioned about unequal U.S. society," state media
KCNA said on Wednesday.
The decision was contained in the final results of an investigation into
King's July border crossing published by KCNA. Last month it reported
interim findings that he wanted refuge in North Korea or elsewhere
because of maltreatment and racial discrimination within the army.
"King confessed that he illegally intruded into the territory of the
DPRK as he harbored ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial
discrimination within the U.S. army and was disillusioned about the
unequal U.S. society," KCNA said.
DPRK are the initials of the North's official name, the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea.
Authorities have decided to expel King under the country's law, KCNA
said, but did not specify how, when or to where he would be expelled.
The U.S. State Department and the White House could not be immediately
reached for comment. U.S. Forces Korea and the United Nations Command
did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Sep/27/images/ads/current/friendshipmanor_sda_FOOTBALL_2023.png)
King, an army private, made a sudden dash into North Korea from the
South on July 18 while on a civilian tour of the Joint Security Area on
the heavily fortified border between the neighbors.
There have been several attempts by U.S. soldiers stationed in South
Korea to desert or defect to North Korea, but King's expulsion came
relatively quickly compared to others who have spent years before being
released from the reclusive country.
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![](../images/092723PIX/news_v8.jpg)
U.S. Private Travis T. King (wearing a black shirt and black cap) is
seen in this picture taken during a tour of the tightly controlled
Joint Security Area (JSA) on the border between the two Koreas, at
the truce village of Panmunjom, South Korea, July 18, 2023. Sarah
Leslie/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Jul/22/images/ads/current/rohlfs_lda_072017.png)
Jonathan Franks, spokesperson for King's family, said: "No
substantive comment expected. We need time."
In August, King's uncle, Myron Gates, told ABC News that his nephew,
who is Black, was experiencing racism during his military
deployment, and that after he spent time in a South Korean jail, he
did not sound like himself.
King, who joined the U.S. army in January 2021, faced two
allegations of assault in South Korea. He pleaded guilty to one
instance of assault and destroying public property for damaging a
police car during a profanity-laced tirade against Koreans,
according to court documents. He was due to face more disciplinary
measures when he arrived back in the United States.
King had finished serving military detention and had been
transported by the U.S. military to the airport to return to his
home unit in the United States. Instead, he left the airport and
joined a tour of the border area, where he ran across despite
attempts by South Korean and U.S. guards to stop him.
(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Additional reporting by Susan Heavey and
Brendan O'Brien; Editing by Toby Chopra and Philippa Fletcher)
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