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China-Japan-Koreas
Former soldier turns himself in to US base in Japan
2004-09-11
A former US serviceman accused of deserting while serving in South Korea in 1965 turned himself in on Saturday to the US military at a base near Tokyo. Charles Jenkins, 64, departed from a hospital in Tokyo early morning and later arrived at the Camp Zama. He was accompanied by his Japanese wife Hitomi Soga and their two daughters, Kyodo News reported. Jenkins is expected to begin legal procedures at the base to avoid imprisonment by seeking a plea bargain for a dishonorable discharge from the US military in consultation with his military defense lawyer, Kyodo quoted sources as saying.
One condition for the plea bargain: he never set foot on American soil again, alive or dead.
Jenkins was charged by the US military with escaping to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in 1965. He later married Soga who was one of the Japanese the DPRK admitted to abduct in late 1970s and early 1980s. Soga returned to Japan in 2002 after Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visit to Pyongyang. Jenkins and his daughters arrived in Tokyo in July via Jakarta.
Posted by:Steve White

#6  He could get a spot in the Kerry campaign
Posted by: Crikey   2004-09-11 2:25:29 PM  

#5  Put him up with Bobby Fischer; they deserve each other.
Posted by: Raj   2004-09-11 12:45:42 PM  

#4  keep him out - he's not welcome in America
Posted by: Frank G   2004-09-11 10:26:16 AM  

#3  The procedures for the Army in the 1980s was to retire 'deserter' records after 10 years unless the individual was an officer, those were kept indefinitely. He'll be treated like Vietnam period deserters, processed to an appropriate location, asked to sign for a punitive discharge under an appropriate chapter of the regulation covering separations, and then sent on his way. Just an administrative action.
Posted by: Don   2004-09-11 8:02:41 AM  

#2  Tell them they can keep him...
Posted by: tu3031   2004-09-11 1:53:01 AM  

#1  Keep in mind there is a huge sympathy for this man and his wife in Japan. If he's treated harshly, it will make the Japanese very angry. The Japanese are not always rational about such things.
Posted by: gromky   2004-09-11 1:48:20 AM  

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