A North Korean defector in his 30s, who attempted to cross the Unification Bridge in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, by stealing a bus to return to North Korea, was sentenced to a suspended prison term in the first instance.
According to the judiciary on the 8th, the 1st Criminal Division of the Uijeongbu District Court in Goyang (Presiding Judge Kim Hee-soo) sentenced Mr. A to two years in prison, two years of disqualification, and three years of probation for charges including attempted violation of the National Security Act (infiltration and escape), violation of the Military Bases and Military Facilities Protection Act, theft, and violation of the Road Traffic Act.
Mr. A was tried for stealing a village bus from a bus garage in Munasan-eup, Paju, at about 12:45 a.m. on Oct. 1 last year and heading toward the northern direction from the southern end of the Unification Bridge, where he crashed through a barricade despite being stopped by soldiers on duty. No one was injured in the process.
Born in Hyesan City, Yanggang Province, North Korea, Mr. A defected in November 2011 and entered Korea in December of the same year. However, it was investigated that he decided to attempt to return to North Korea due to economic difficulties and growing longing for his family living there.
Before his attempt to return to North Korea, Mr. A visited a community center to ask a public official about emergency living expenses support, saying, "I think I had an illusion about South Korea," and, "Living in North Korea seems much better than living in South Korea," adding, "I miss my family in North Korea so much and want to go back to North Korea."
When the public official asked whether he would not be punished for defecting if he returned to North Korea, Mr. A reportedly said, "I can go in a way that is exposed to the media," stating, "If I hijack a vehicle and go to North Korea through Panmunjom, it would attract media attention, and if I criticize the South Korean regime in North Korea, they will forgive me and let me live there again."
The court stated, "It seems that the defendant's deteriorating health, economic difficulties, isolation and maladaptation in South Korean society, and longing for his parents and younger brother living in North Korea have compounded and contributed to this outcome," adding, "It does not appear that the defendant committed this crime with hostile intent toward the political system of South Korea or with the political intent to praise or sympathize with North Korea as an anti-state entity."
It continued, "The motivations and circumstances underlying this case, which may seem somewhat absurd to the general public of South Korea, indicate that it is not merely an individual issue of the defendant, but partly reflects the realities faced by North Korean defectors settled in South Korea, which should be understood as a problem that South Korean society preparing for unification needs to address."