US army charges Travis King with desertion for fleeing to North Korea

The US army has charged Pte Travis King with crimes ranging from desertion for running into North Korea in July to assault against fellow soldiers and solicitation of child abuse images.

The army’s case against King, set out in documents seen by Reuters, includes eight distinct charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, setting up a substantial legal battle for the 23-year-old soldier after his release from North Korean custody in September.

The army did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a statement provided by a family spokesperson, King’s mother, Claudine Gates, expressed her unconditional love and asked that her son “be afforded the presumption of innocence”.

She said: “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. 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.“

For weeks, the army has deferred questions about whether King would face disciplinary action, saying its priority has been on ensuring the soldier received the proper care after being held for two months by North Korea.