Spanish court issues arrest warrant for Korean national, identity not disclosed
Among the 10 members of ‘Free Joseon’ who participated in the 2019 attack
Except for two people, the rest are wanted… US court ruled against deportation early this year
NK News, an American media outlet specializing in North Korea, reported on the 16th (local time) that a court in Budapest, the capital of Hungary, ruled to deport to Spain a Korean national who participated in the attack on the North Korean embassy in Spain in February 2019.
The court said in a statement that it had ordered the Hungarian government to deport a Korean national who was the subject of a European arrest warrant issued by a Spanish court. The court did not disclose the personal information of the person subject to deportation.
The defendant is an activist belonging to an anti-North Korea group called Chollima Civil Defense Force or Free Joseon, and several members of this group attacked the North Korean embassy in Spain a few days before the North Korea-US summit in Hanoi in February 2019.
“The defendant, a member of a criminal group, entered the North Korean Embassy in Madrid armed with firearms and weapons,” the court statement said. Embassy staff were detained, beaten and some were injured. “Afterwards, the criminals ransacked the building and fled in three embassy vehicles.”
According to a court statement, there are no trials of Korean defendants pending in Hungarian courts. The European arrest warrant issued by the Spanish court indicates a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
The court added, “The defendant agreed to simplify the deportation process.”
According to the statement, Hungary must hand over the defendant to Spanish authorities by the 25th, and if the deadline is exceeded, the defendant will be released.
Up to 10 criminals participated in the North Korean embassy attack, including American nationals Christopher Ahn, Sam Ryu, and Charles Ryu, Mexican national Adrian Hong, and South Korean national Lee Woo-ram. It has not been confirmed whether Lee Woo-ram is subject to deportation.
The U.S. government planned to deport Christopher Ahn, a former U.S. Marine who led the attack on the North Korean embassy last year, to Spain, but a federal court put the brakes on it earlier this year. The court ruled that the charges against Ahn were not recognized as crimes in both countries at the same time due to the hostile relationship between North Korea and the United States.
The other ringleader, Adrian Hong, is currently wanted by U.S. authorities. In addition, the whereabouts of Sam Ryu, Lee Woo-ram, and North Korean defector Charles Ryu have not been confirmed.
The North Korean embassy in Spain first issued a statement calling for An’s deportation at the beginning of the year. North Korea’s state-run Korean Central Television issued a statement a month after the embassy attack, calling it a “serious terrorist attack.”
North Korea recently announced that it would close its embassy in Spain due to financial difficulties.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.