Soldier who ran into Kim Jong Un's North Korea learns his fate at army court

A US soldier who ran across the border into North Korea last year has been sentenced to 12 months in prison.

Travis King, 24, pleaded guilty to five charges, including one count of desertion, one count of assault on a non-commissioned officer, and three counts of disobeying a lawful order. The private second class, who had been serving in the US military since January 2021, was being detained in South Korea over assault allegations to which he pleaded guilty.

He was with a civilian tour group in Panmunjom, South Korea, when he fled across the fortified zone on July 18 last year. He was then detained in North Korea before returning to the US in September of that year. On Friday, King was handed a 12-month prison sentence by a military judge at Fort Bliss, Texas, but will now walk free after being sentenced to time served. King had already served 338 days in the US, and and additional 63 days in North Korea.

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His lawyer Frank Rosenblatt said: "With time already served and credit for good behaviour, Travis is now free and will return home." Major Allyson Montgomery, with the army's office of the special counsel, told an army publication: "The outcome of today's court martial is a fair and just result that reflects the seriousness of the offenses committed by Pvt. King and will promote good order and discipline within the US Army by deterring soldiers from committing similar offenses in the future."

King, who has since been discharged from the military, was set to face disciplinary action in the US following his release from South Korean custody. But while being escorted by military police, he managed to slip away from Seoul's international airport and joined a civilian tour of the border area between North and South Korea.

In a shocking turn of events, he then made a dash for North Korea where he was instantly detained. He reportedly laughed as he crossed the border as witness, Swedish tourist Mikaela Johansson, said on a Facebook post she was on the tour at the time as the solider. The incident comes five decades after US soldier, James Dresnok, defected to North Korea in 1962 while facing threats of a court-martial.