So what do you do when you are a deserter of two different militaries and on the run? Go to the sauna of course:
South Korean officials captured a man Sunday who they say deserted both the U.S. and South Korean militaries.
The 26-year-old, identified as Pvt. Kim, was nabbed in a public sauna in the Hongdae neighborhood of Seoul, a Ministry of National Defense spokesman confirmed Monday. The spokesman said they received a tip about Kim’s location.
I wonder if they can get him as well for violating an off limits order as well?
This just goes to show once again, it isn’t just 2ID who has taxi cab related incidents:
Park, interviewed by phone on Monday, said he picked up the boys near the main gate of Camp Carroll at about 2 a.m. and took them to downtown Waegwan — about a $2.50 fare.
When they arrived, the teens bolted without paying, Park said. He gave chase and managed to catch them with the help of a bystander.
They began to scuffle and Park said he saw that one teen was wielding something in his hand before striking the driver in the stomach.
“At first I didn’t realize what happened,†said Park. He grabbed his midsection and his hands came away bloody.
“The blood was coming out of my jacket, it was dripping on the street,†he said. “It was then that I realized I had been stabbed with a knife.â€
This is actually one of the most vicious attacks on a cab driver yet in Korea. Truly despicable to stab some in the gut for a $2.50 taxi fare. It will be interesting to see how Korean law is applied to these two dependents of US servicemembers, but hopefully the new taxi cab law applies to them as well and they see some jail time.Â
Additionally, why were they out at 2AM to begin with? Their parents will probably have a lot of explaining to do this week.
You can read more over at Lost Nomad and the Marmot’s Hole.
Courtesy the Metropolitician, comes news of a dance this weekend to raise money and support the farmers of Daechu-ri. Daechu-ri is the village that was annexed by the Korean government as part of the agreed upon USFK transformation plan to expand Camp Humphreys in order to consolidate both Area 1 and Yongsan Garrison forces on one camp.
No word yet when a dance is going to happen in support of the people in Uijongbu and Dongducheon who were forced to relocate for such things just as equally important to national security, such as a new Home Plus, high rise apartments, shopping centers, a four lane highway, and a subway expansion.
The weird deserter case involving a Korean national who enlisted in the US Army and then deserted and then was drafted by the Korean Army has now gotten even weirder:
The 26-year-old man, identified only as Kim, joined the U.S. Army in 2003 in a bid to become an American citizen, South Korean Ministry of National Defense officials confirmed earlier this month.
After deserting the U.S. Army in 2005, he returned to South Korea and began his mandatory military service in November 2006, officials said.
With the knowledge of his South Korean unit, he turned himself into the U.S. military earlier this month but was released back to South Korea’s 25th Infantry Division so officials could investigate the sticky legal matter, the MND said.
But Kim deserted his post in northern Gyeonggi province early Friday morning, South Korean officials confirmed.
Officials believe the unarmed Kim is hiding in mountainous terrain surrounding the camp and have launched a search.
Maybe he can pull a trifecta and defect and join the North Korean army?Â
The Marmot has more on this as well.
UPDATE #2: The Stars and Stripes now has an English language report out that clarifies what happened. It was just one soldier involved in the incident and this soldier was in fact and MP and is a 8th Army soldier stationed in Yongsan. The 2ID bashing can stop now.
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For some of you non-military types out there that have always wondered what it is like to eat a military MRE (Meal Ready to Eat), here is one person’s guide to eating one that may be of interest to you.Â
Just for the record I really don’t mind eating MRE’s. I think this is something the Army does very well. They are light to carry, can be eaten hot with a heater inside each package, are filling, and most of them do taste decent. If something does not taste good to you, you always have the option of adding Tabasco sauce to it. My all time favorite MRE is chicken & salsa, good stuff as far as Army food goes.
If you haven’t done so already you might want to check out your MyPay account:
Investigators are looking into how some myPay users had their accounts hacked, said Defense Department spokesman Lt. Col. Brian Maka.
Operated by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, or DFAS, myPay allows all servicemembers and Defense Department civilians to check their finances online.
About two dozen myPay users have had their accounts hacked over the past eight months, probably after their personal information was stolen from their home computers using spyware, a DFAS official said in a Wednesday e-mail to Stars and Stripes. There are about 3.7 million myPay users.
Remember when I said the Kurds want less Zaytun and more Hyundai? Well I’m willing to bet that this week may be the beginning of that:
"Roh will make an official visit to Saudi Arabia from Saturday through Monday, a state visit to Kuwait on Monday and Tuesday and an official visit to Qatar from Tuesday through Thursday before returning home Friday," Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.
"Through the trip, the president will seek to provide an opportunity to expand South Korea’s partnership and cooperation with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in the fields of energy resources, infrastructure construction, defense industry and information technology," said the office.
It noted some 200 South Korean business leaders will accompany the president on his Middle East swing, seeking to support his sales diplomacy and establish human networks through business forums, symposiums and various industrial exhibitions.
Three days in Qatar? I’m willing to bet one of those days is for a surprise trip to Kurdistan, to visit the Zaytun unit. I think it would be a good thing to do, to support the troops there and to unleash those 200 business leaders on Kurdistan. Those 200 business leaders can do more for Kurdistan than Zaytun unit is doing now.Â
UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon had a scare while visiting Iraq today:
A rocket landed near the prime minister’s office Thursday during the first visit to Iraq by the head of the United Nations in nearly a year and a half, sending Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon ducking unharmed behind a podium at a news conference.
The attack came as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government said it had been negotiating with Sunni insurgents for months, and the U.S. military said that it had released a senior aide to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on al-Maliki’s request.
The rocket caused no injuries but rattled the building in the heavily guarded Green Zone, sent small chips of debris floating from the ceiling, and left a one-metre-wide crater about 45 metres away outside.
I saw the video on the news and it did appear Ban was quite rattled. You can tell Maliki has gotten used to rockets attacks because he seemed to be quite composed and tried to continue the news conference before ending it on Ban’s request. It is amazing the strategic consequences one rocket can have. That one rocket attack is now being broadcast around the world, which is great propaganda for the terrorists. That is why they continue to radomly fire rockets hoping they can get lucky and get great propaganda news coverage. Notice none of the stories you will read about this attack will mention anything about the random rocket and mortar attacks that by far kill more civilians than any military target.Â
