Americans Who Entered North Korea: A Historical Perspective

The situation involving Private 2nd Class Travis King, a U.S. soldier who crossed into North Korea at a border village, has drawn attention amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The U.S. and U.S.-led United Nations Command are actively working to resolve the matter.

Over the years, there have been instances of other Americans crossing into North Korea, including a few U.S. soldiers. Some were driven by evangelical fervor, while others were captivated by the enigmatic allure of a reclusive police state fueled by anti-U.S. sentiment.

Here are accounts of several Americans who ventured into North Korea in the past:

Charles Jenkins

Charles Jenkins, originally from Rich Square, N.C., deserted his post as an Army sergeant in 1965 during the Cold War era and fled across the Demilitarized Zone into North Korea. Regarded as a propaganda asset, North Korea featured Jenkins in leaflets and films. In 1980, he married Hitomi Soga, a Japanese nursing student who had been abducted by North Korean agents in 1978. Jenkins was permitted to leave North Korea in 2004 to reunite with his wife in Japan, where he turned himself in to U.S. military authorities. He faced charges of desertion and defection to North Korea, resulting in a dishonorable discharge and a 25-day sentence in a U.S. military jail in Japan. Jenkins passed away in Japan in 2017.

Bruce Byron Lowrance

Bruce Byron Lowrance’s case highlights how North Korea’s treatment of American detainees is influenced by its relations with Washington. In 2018, amid a period of favorable diplomacy between then-U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Lowrance illegally entered North Korea through China in October. However, just a month later, North Korea swiftly expelled Lowrance, deviating from its usual prolonged detention of foreigners. This expedited release was likely intended to foster a positive atmosphere for dialogue with the United States. Prior to this, three other American detainees were released in conjunction with the Trump-Kim summit in June 2018. However, subsequent negotiations faltered, leading to a breakdown in diplomacy after the second Trump-Kim summit in February 2019.

Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller, a 24-year-old from Bakersfield, California, was sentenced to six years of hard labor in North Korea in September 2014. The Supreme Court of North Korea claimed that Miller tore up his tourist visa upon arrival in Pyongyang, expressing a desire to experience the country’s prison life and secretly investigate its human rights conditions. North Korea announced his detainment while then-President Barack Obama was visiting South Korea on a state visit. Miller was eventually freed in November 2014 alongside Kenneth Bae, an American missionary and tour leader.

Kenneth Bae

Korean-American missionary Kenneth Bae was arrested in November 2012 while leading a tour group in a special economic zone of North Korea. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison for “hostile acts,” which included smuggling inflammatory literature and attempting to establish an anti-government base at a hotel in a border town. Bae’s family stated that he suffered from chronic health issues. He returned to the United States in November 2014 following a secret mission by James Clapper, then-U.S. Director of National Intelligence, who also secured the release of Matthew Miller.

Jeffrey Fowle

In 2014, Jeffrey Fowle, an Ohio municipal worker, was released after being detained for six months in North Korea. Fowle had left a Bible in a nightclub in the city of Chongjin, leading to his detention. His release followed negotiations involving retired diplomat and former Ohio Congressman Tony Hall. The distribution of Bibles and secret religious activities are considered serious offenses in North Korea, often resulting in imprisonment or execution.

Otto Warmbier

Otto Warmbier, a 22-year-old University of Virginia student, tragically died shortly after being flown home in a coma in June 2017. He had spent 17 months in North Korean captivity after being seized by authorities during a tour group visit. Warmbier was convicted of attempting to steal a propaganda poster and received a 15-year sentence of hard labor. North Korea denied allegations of torture, claiming to have provided him with medical care. A U.S. federal judge ruled in 2022 that Warmbier’s parents should receive a partial payment of $240,300 seized from a North Korean bank account, as part of the more than $501 million awarded to them in 2018.

These accounts shed light on the experiences of various Americans who ventured into North Korea, underscoring the complex dynamics between the two nations and the challenges faced by those who found themselves caught in the midst of geopolitical tensions.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about North Korea

More about North Korea

• The surreal Korean border village where a US soldier crossed into the North
• North Korea stays silent on its apparent detention of a US soldier who bolted across the border
• US soldier who fled to North Korea had served 2 months in South Korea prison on assault charge
• Charles Jenkins – The Washington Post
• Otto Warmbier case – CNN
• Kenneth Bae – Biography.com
• Jeffrey Fowle – The Guardian
• Matthew Miller’s release – The New York Times