U.S. Marine Commando Arrested from Indo-Nepal Border

The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) troops arrested an American marine commando near the Indo-Nepal border while he was roaming in the area in a suspicious manner.

David Doohyun Kyung, a 50-year-old commando of South Korean origin, was taken into custody on March 19 night and is being questioned by investigators of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), external intelligence agency RAW and local police, an SSB spokesperson said, according to the Press Trust of India. They discovered $1,919, a compass and an ID card on him.

Kyung was found near the Khouna border post in Jainagar of Madhubani district, Bihar.

After the SSB found him, he was handed over to the local police. The SSB found that he was a U.S. citizen and produced a tourist visa for Nepal that will expire on April 12, the spokesperson said.

He had earlier visited India and was deported after his visa expired in January 2018.

“On detailed questioning by security agencies, including the IB, the RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) and the police, it was found that he had visited India on October 26, 2017, and was asked to leave the country on January 17. His visa was cancelled and he was deported on January 26,” he said.

Kyung migrated from South Korea to the United States in 1998. He said that from Delhi he went to South Korea on March 12 and left for Nepal soon after. However, his statements were found to be “contradictory as he had the tickets and boarding pass, but there was no such entry in his passport. According to him after reaching Nepal he visited the country and he was apprehended by the SSB while he came to visit Janakpur (Nepal) and its nearby village area.”

Security officials have found his attempt to enter India late at night after being deported once as a “worrying development” and his credentials and motives are now being probed further. The police and intelligence agencies are in the process of obtaining further details about him from the U.S. embassy in Delhi, they said.