North Korean Defector Doesn't Remember Escaping Across Border: Report

A North Korean soldier who was shot during a daring defection escape in November is having trouble remembering the incident, according to South Korea television station Maeil Broadcasting Network (MBN) Thursday.

The soldier, Oh Chong Song, defected from North Korea Nov. 13 and was shot multiple times as he fled. Oh crossed the demilitarized zone (DMZ), a heavily guarded 2.5-mile border between the two Koreas. South Korean soldiers found Oh in a heap under a pile of leaves near the Joint Security Area, a shared part of the DMZ where officials can meet for discussions. Oh was severely wounded and taken by helicopter to Ajou University Medical Center.

Oh drove to the border in a jeep, which he abandoned and ran across the border. He faced a hail of more than 40 North Korean bullets.

MBN’s report said that Oh is recovering well physically, but appeared to be suffering memory loss, possibly from post-traumatic stress disorder. South Korean intelligence officials told MBN that Oh does not remember his defection.

Oh had to have his digestive tract repaired surgically from a bullet wound and during the surgery, doctors found he had large parasitic worms typically found in developing and impoverished countries.

Oh was one of four soldiers to have defected from North Korea in a year marked by ever-increasing tension between the isolated country and the rest of the world.

North Korea has been hit by United Nations economic sanctions several times after repeated ballistic missile tests and the detonation of its sixth and largest nuclear weapon in September. The weapon, North Korea claimed, was a hydrogen bomb.

One of the defectors this year reportedly had anthrax antibodies in his system indicating that he had either been given a vaccine for the biological weapon or was exposed to it — the report came on the heels of another report that said North Korea was testing loading anthrax on to intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM). North Korea showcased the theoretical ability to hit anywhere in the U.S. with an ICBM launch in November — it was the third ICBM test this year.

North Korea has denied building biological weapons.