US Army soldier who fled to North Korea accused of desertion

Travis King, 23, the U.S. Army soldier who fled to North Korea in July, has been charged by the Army with desertion, among other crimes, according to a document seen by CNN on Thursday (19).

King, who was released from North Korean custody and returned to the United States last month, was charged with a series of other alleged crimes, including possession of child pornography, assaulting fellow soldiers and disobeying a superior officer, according to the document. There were eight charges in total.

King was detained on Wednesday in Fort Bliss, Texas, according to a family source, who told CNN that he is in pre-trial detention.

In a note sent to CNN, King’s mother, Claudine Gates, said she loves her son “unconditionally” and is “extremely concerned about his mental health.” “As his mother, I ask that my son be granted the presumption of innocence,” she said.

“A mother meets her son, and I believe something happened to mine while he was deployed. The Army has promised to investigate what happened at Camp Humphries and I await the results,” Gates added.

The Army confirmed on Friday (20) that King was accused of violating the military judicial code, but declined to comment on the details of the case, citing his privacy.

King returned to U.S. soil in late September after U.S. officials said he “deliberately and without authorization” crossed the border into North Korea in July.

Shortly before fleeing, King was released from detention in South Korea in connection with an October 2022 incident in which he allegedly pushed and punched a victim in the face at a club in Seoul, according to court documents.

King was supposed to board a flight to Texas, where he would face disciplinary proceedings, but when he was cleared at a security checkpoint at the Seoul airport, King left and, the next day, went to the Joint Security Area of ​​the demilitarized zone, from where he fled across the border line into North Korea.