A US Soldier Has Been Captured By North Korea After Crossing Demarcation Line

The news first broke when the UN Command released this Twitter statement this morning regarding a US citizen who had crossed the Military Demarcation Line into North Korea. 

Now major news sites have identified the citizen as Army private Travis King. I couldn't find any info about what unit he was with or what his job was in South Korea, but according to The Washington Post King did this deliberately: 

The soldier had been punished for misconduct while serving in South Korea and was being sent home to the United States. But he did not get on his scheduled flight after U.S. military personnel took him to the airport, the official said.

The soldier made a “deliberate decision” to cross, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. The United States is trying to determine his whereabouts and condition, the official added.

The American, whom officials did not identify by name, was visiting the Joint Security Area that separates North and South Korea while on an “orientation tour,” the United Nations said.

My God… Getting in trouble in the military and thinking that sprinting into North Korea is the better alternative to mopping barracks floors back in the USA or whatnot. Wild E-2 level thinking right there, which, if you've ever been one yourself you also totally get… but still. 

I'm just curious as to how this soldier (who had to have been AWOL after missing his flight??) was able to get on a Joint Security Area tour of the muthafuckin' DMZ, as I feel like it's such a wildly tense area you can't just hop on one of those with ease. People who claim to have taken these tours say it's a big deal & majorly supervised. 

Whatever the case & however dumb of a decision this may have been, I hope the soldier is ok and that we get him back safe & sound. I'm sure that command is going nutso right now dealing with his & will be interested to hear more details as they become available. 

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