N. Korean spy caught posing as defector

By Kim Young-jin

A North Korean spy has been arrested for attempting to enter the country posing as a defector, authorities said over the weekend amid ongoing concern over possible Pyongyang agents working in the South.

The National Intelligence Service and other government agencies said the man, identified as Kim, was found to be a member of the North’s military security command during a routine background check.

His detention comes amid heightened concerns over possible North Korean spies here after prosecutors in September charged a North Korean agent for attempting to murder an anti-Pyongyang activist with a poison-tipped weapon.

Kim arrived in the South after travelling to China, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand, in an apparent bid to mimic defectors. The vast majority of the over-21,000 defectors here crossed the China border before arriving via a third country.

Authorities said the spy did not have a chance to engage in espionage and that the investigation was ongoing due to suspected links with other North Korean agents who may be pretending to be defectors.

Last month, Won Sei-hoon, head of the National Intelligence Service, reportedly told the parliament's intelligence committee that Seoul had arrested several North Korean agents for planning to assassinate anti-Pyongyang activists.

Last year, authorities arrested a female spy who obtained classified data on Seoul’s subway system that was feared could be used in a terrorist attack. She entered the country via Laos, posing as a defector. It also arrested two agents who had been ordered to kill Hwang Jang-yeop, the late defector who was once a high-ranking Pyongyang official.

In 2008, Won Jeong-wha, a female spy masquerading as a defector was handed a five-year sentence for relaying military secrets to the North she received from Army officers with whom she had sexual relations.