U.S. soldier Travis King pleaded guilty to desertion and other charges in a military hearing in Fort Bliss, Texas. As part of a deal with prosecutors, the 24-year-old Army private admitted to one count of desertion, three counts of disobeying a superior officer, and one count of assault on a noncommissioned officer. He was sentenced to 12 months confinement, but with credit for time already served, and received a demotion to the lowest enlisted rank as well as a dishonorable discharge. The Army Office of the Special Trial Counsel announced King’s guilty plea and sentencing in a news release.
In July 2023, King fled into North Korea while on a guided tour of the Korean Demilitarized Zone. This came after he had been detained in South Korea for assaulting two people and damaging a police car. After being held by North Korea for about two months, King was expelled to China, who transferred him into U.S. custody in September 2023. No concessions were made by the U.S. to secure his release. He has been in confinement at the Otero County Jail in New Mexico since returning to the U.S. It is unclear if he was released following the hearing where he pleaded guilty to desertion and other charges.
Initially charged with 14 counts, King’s attorney announced that as part of the plea deal, nine of the counts were dismissed. King had been in the U.S. Army since January 2021 and was serving in South Korea as part of the Pentagon’s regular Korean Force Rotation. Maj. Allyson Montgomery, an Army prosecutor, stated that the outcome of the court-martial was a fair and just result that reflects the seriousness of King’s offenses and aims to promote good order and discipline within the U.S. Army by deterring similar offenses in the future. The U.S. Army announced King’s sentencing after his guilty plea in the military hearing at Fort Bliss, Texas.
News editor Faris Tanyos, along with contributors Tucker Reals, Eleanor Watson, and Duarte Dias, reported on U.S. soldier Travis King’s guilty plea to desertion and other charges in a military hearing in Fort Bliss, Texas. King had been detained in South Korea for assaulting two people before fleeing into North Korea during a guided tour of the Korean Demilitarized Zone. After being held by North Korea and subsequently transferred to U.S. custody, King has been in confinement at the Otero County Jail in New Mexico. The military hearing resulted in his guilty plea to desertion and related charges, with a sentence of 12 months confinement, demotion, and dishonorable discharge.
The U.S. Army prosecutor, Maj. Allyson Montgomery, emphasized that the outcome of the court-martial and sentencing reflected the seriousness of King’s offenses and aimed to promote good order and discipline within the military by deterring similar actions in the future. King’s guilty plea and sentencing followed a plea deal in which nine out of 14 charges were dismissed. As part of the Pentagon’s regular Korean Force Rotation, King had been in the U.S. Army since January 2021. His case garnered attention for the rare occurrence of a U.S. soldier crossing into North Korea and the subsequent legal proceedings and sentencing that followed.
