By Jovonne Ledet
Pvt. Travis King, the U.S. soldier who crossed into North Korea, is facing several charges including desertion and possession of child pornography, according to Reuters.
King reportedly faces eight total charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, including making false statements and disobeying superior officers. Prior to his escape to North Korea, the Army also charged him with broad misconduct, according to reports.
Charges also allege that King solicited a Snapchat user to “knowingly and willingly produce child pornography.” The U.S. soldier was charged with insubordination for allegedly violating Army regulations, including leaving his base after curfew and drinking alcohol.
In a statement, King’s mother, Claudine Gates, said her son should “be afforded the presumption of innocence.”
“The man I raised, the man I dropped off at boot camp, the man who spent the holidays with me before deploying did not drink,” Gates said. “A mother knows her son, and I believe something happened to mine while he was deployed. The Army promised to investigate what happened at Camp Humphreys, and I await the results.”
News of the charges comes after King entered North Korea on foot on July 18.
Prior to entering North Korea, King was in South Korea when he was arrested last October for allegedly assaulting a citizen, damaging police vehicles, and verbally abusing officers. U.S. officials previously said he was detained by South Korean authorities and was supposed to board a flight back to Fort Bliss, Texas, where he would’ve been potentially discharged from the army.
King skipped the flight and joined a guided tour during which he crossed the demilitarized zone and went into North Korea without authorization.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) previously reported that King admitted to entering the country illegally in July due to “ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army,”
King was returned back to U.S. custody last month.
“The relevant organ of the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] decided to expel Travis King, a soldier of the U.S. Army who illegally intruded into the territory of the DPRK, under the law of the Republic,” KCNA wrote.
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