Charles Jenkins, American Held By North Korea For 40 Years After Defection, Dies At 77
Charles Jenkins, a former American soldier who defected across the Demilitarized Zone into North Korea in 1965 and was held by the totalitarian regime for 40 years, died in Japan on Monday at the age of 77. Jenkins, who was freed in 2004, had lived on Sado Island with his wife, a Japanese woman named Hitomi Soga who herself was kidnapped by North Korea and forced to teach her language to Pyongyang’s spies. Jenkins’ death was first reported by Kyodo News and Japan’s NHK broadcaster, who said the cause was heart failure. In January 1965, ...
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