Tuesday, September 16, 2014

American Man Trying To Swim To North Korea Reportedly Arrested By South Korean Marines


An American man was reportedly arrested Tuesday night by South Korean Marines after apparently attempting to swim across the Han River to North Korea.



The man, who has not been identified but is believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s and of Arabic descent, was trying to swim across the Han River near Gimpo, in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.



"I was trying to go to North Korea in order to meet with supreme leader Kim Jong-un," the man said during interrogation, according to Yonhap.



However, he apparently couldn't handle the long swim.



“The American man was swimming northward with the current when he grew tired and laid low near the riverside. This was when he was discovered by the Marines,” a source told the Korea Herald. “I believe this is the first time an American has tried to flee to the North in the Gimpo area.”



The arrest comes just two days after American Matthew Miller was sentenced to six years of hard labor in North Korea, allegedly for espionage.



Two other Americans, Jeffrey Fowle and Kenneth Bae, are also being held in North Korea. Bae was sentenced to 15 years of labor in 2013 for alleged "hostile acts" against the state, while Fowle was arrested in May for allegedly leaving a Bible in a bathroom at a club for foreign sailors.



He has not yet been tried or sentenced.

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