US soldier who fled to North Korea to plead guilty to desertion

“Travis’s guilty plea will be entered at a general court-martial,” Mr Rosenblatt said in an emailed statement on Monday.

“There, he will explain what he did, answer a military judge’s questions about why he is pleading guilty, and be sentenced.”

Mr King is grateful to support from his family and friends and to all those who did not “pre-judge” him based on the allegations, the lawyer added.

Charges expected to be dismissed as part of the plea deal include possession of child pornography.

Pvt King has been in the army since January 2021 and was in South Korea as part of a unit rotation when he crossed into North Korea.

Prior to that incident, he had served two months in detention in South Korea on charges that he had assaulted two people and kicked a police car.

He was released from custody on 10 July – eight days before he crossed the country’s border with Pyongyang.

His release deal was brokered by Swedish officials, who brought Pvt King to North Korea’s border with China.

Little is known about how he was treated in North Korea, why he fled there in the first place, and why Pyongyang expelled him.

The US has said it made no concessions to secure his release.