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Man apprehended after causing scene near border, claimed he wanted to go to North Korea

Published: 19 Nov. 2025, 14:39 Updated: 19 Nov. 2025, 16:39

The Tongil Bridge in Paju, Gyeonggi, near the border on Oct. 26, 2025 [YONHAP]

A man in his 50s was taken into custody after causing a scene near a restricted bridge at the border city of Paju, Gyeonggi, claiming he wanted to go to North Korea.

According to military and police sources on Wednesday, a report was made at 9:47 p.m. on Tuesday that a man was “kicking a restricted access vehicle barrier and walking around” near the south gate of the Unification Bridge in Munsan-eup, Paju.

Police who were dispatched to the scene found that the man had damaged military facilities and arrested him on the spot for violating the Protection of Military Bases and Installations Act.

He had driven his car to the bridge’s south gate and, despite being stopped by soldiers, shouted that he wanted to go to North Korea and began kicking military installations, causing a disturbance.

According to police, he is a South Korean citizen and not a North Korean defector, was not under the influence of alcohol and told authorities that “things haven’t been going well lately” and that the incident occurred while he was driving.

Authorities are continuing their investigation into the full circumstances of the incident.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG SI-NAE [[email protected]]