![Private 2nd Class Travis King crossed the DMZ into North Korea on Tuesday and is now being detained in the country.](https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/wp-content/uploads/Travis-King-600x315.jpg)
The Gateway Pundit reported that a US soldier, Private 2nd Class Travis King, was detained in North Korea in July after reportedly defecting.
Before his detainment, King was reportedly being escorted back to the United States from South Korea for disciplinary reasons.
The illegal crossing reportedly occurred at 3.27pm local time (2:37 AM ET) according to the Daily Mirror. King was visiting the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) at Panmunjom with a civilian tour group before leaving their sight.
On Wednesday, North Korea announced that it will expel King from the country.
Pvt. Travis King made an unauthorized crossing of the Military Demarcation Line into the North during a tour to the Joint Security Area in the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas on July 18.
“The relevant organ of the DPRK 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,” the North’s official Korean Central News Agency said in what it called the final findings of an investigation into King. DPRK stands for the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The announcement came weeks after the secretive regime confirmed the U.S. soldier’s border crossing for the first time on Aug. 16, saying he “illegally intruded” due to “inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army.”
The state media did not provide further details on when and how King will be expelled.
North Korea says US soldier Travis King who crossed into country in July will be expelled | Just The News https://t.co/A6idnCyMOl
— John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) September 27, 2023
This story is developing.