South Korea army slammed over defector lie

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SEOUL, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- South Korea's military has come under fire after a team of investigators found a defecting North Korean soldier passed through front lines undetected.

An army unit originally announced the soldier was spotted on surveillance cameras Oct. 2 and was taken into custody after he said he wanted defect to the South, Yonhap News Agency reported Wednesday.

Investigators with the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff discovered two days later the unit was not aware of the defector until he knocked on the door of their outpost.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Jung Seung-jo told parliamentary auditors Monday the soldier's defection had not been promptly announced because the military does not disclose defections by soldiers to protect their families in the North.

Opposition lawmakers sharply criticized the chairman, saying the defector could have been carrying weapons.

The Oct. 2 defection was one of three recently. On Saturday, a North Korean soldier said he had killed two officers before heading across the border. Another soldier crossed the border Aug. 17 while waving a white flag.

North Korean soldiers on the front lines are chosen for their good family backgrounds and are heavily screened.