Travis King, Army soldier who ran into North Korea, to plead guilty Friday, lawyer says

September 20, 2024

ftwitty/Getty Images

(FORT BLISS, Texas) — Travis King, the U.S. Army private who ran across the border from South Korea to North Korea last year will plead guilty on Friday at a general court martial hearing being held at Fort Bliss, Texas.

“He faces 14 charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice but will plead guilty to five, including desertion, while the remaining charges will be withdrawn and dismissed by the Army,” his attorney Franklin Rosenblatt said in a statement issued Thursday.

“Travis will provide an account of his actions, respond to the military judge’s questions about his decision to plead guilty, and receive his sentence,” Rosenblatt added.

The plea deal was first disclosed by Rosenblatt on August 26 after initial discussions with prosecutors began in mid-July .

At the time a spokesperson for the Office of Special Trial Counsel confirmed to ABC News that if King’s guilty plea is accepted by the presiding judge he would be sentenced King pursuant to the terms of the plea agreement. It is unclear how much prison time King could face as part of the plea deal that will be presented to the judge on Friday.

If the judge does not accept the guilty plea, the judge can rule that the case be litigated in a contested court-martial.

In July 2023, King crossed into North Korea, triggering an international incident when he was held by North Korean authorities for more than two months after he dashed into North Korea at the Joint Security Area at the Demilitarized Zone between North Korea and South Korea.

Prior to joining the tour group that brought him to the DMZ King had escaped from his Army escort at the airport where he was to have boarded a flight to the United States after having just been released by South Korean authorities following his detention on assault charges.

Upon his release in September King returned to the United States where he was immediately placed in a military reintegration program at the Brooke Army Medical Center that is offered to American civilians and military personnel who have been detained overseas as hostages or involuntarily.

During his stay the Army declined to comment on whether King might face disciplinary action, saying their priority was his physical and mental well-being.

But in October military prosecutors filed eight criminal charges against King.

Caroline Ellison, key witness in FTX fraud case, set to be sentenced

Caroline Ellison, former chief executive officer of Alameda Research LLC, exits court in New York, US, on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

(NEW YORK) — Caroline Ellison, a key witness in the FTX case, is set to be sentenced on Tuesday for her role in one of the largest financial frauds in history.

Ellison, 29, a former crypto executive, had pleaded guilty to multiple charges in connection with the federal fraud and conspiracy case involving the crypto trading platform. She cooperated with prosecutors and was a key witness during the trial last year of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, her former boyfriend.

Ellison — who was the co-chief executive of Alameda Research, Bankman-Fried’s companion hedge fund — testified over three days during the trial, telling the court that she committed fraud with her former on-again-off-again boyfriend and at his direction.

Bankman-Fried was ultimately found guilty on all counts for defrauding FTX customers out of $8 billion.

Ahead of her sentencing in New York Tuesday afternoon, Ellison’s attorneys urged Judge Lewis Kaplan to be lenient, arguing Ellison “unflinchingly acknowledged her own wrongdoing, without minimization, blame shifting or self-pity.”

“She time and again proved herself an enormously credible and important cooperating witness” against Bankman-Fried, they added.

Federal prosecutors agreed Ellison provided “extraordinary cooperation that was crucial to the Government’s successful prosecution” of Bankman-Fried.

“Although she did not blow the whistle on any misconduct before FTX’s collapse, she came clean prior to FTX’s declaring bankruptcy to her employees on November 9, 2022,” prosecutor Danielle Sassoon wrote in a letter to the judge. “Ellison approached her cooperation with remarkable candor, remorse, and seriousness.”

Ellison faces 110 years in prison, according to court filings.

Prosecutors declined to make a specific sentencing recommendation. Defense attorneys suggested a sentence in line with a recommendation from probation officials of time served plus three years supervised release.

“Caroline poses no risk of recidivism and presents no threat to public safety. It would therefore promote respect for the law to grant leniency in recognition of Caroline’s early disclosure of the crimes, her unmitigated acceptance of responsibility for them, and—most importantly—her extensive cooperation with the government,” defense attorney Anjan Sahni wrote in a letter to the judge.

Sahni outlined Ellison’s “complex” relationship with Bankman-Fried that began when the two met at Jane Street Capital in 2015 when she was an intern and he was a junior trader. He said their “on-again-off-again, sometimes-secret relationship” had “warped” her moral compass and led her to take actions “that she knew to be wrong, helping him steal billions.”

Bankman-Fried was sentenced in March to 25 years in prison. Judge Kaplan also ordered that he forfeit $11 billion that the government can use to compensate victims.

The former crypto billionaire has filed an appeal to overturn his conviction.

Two former FTX executives who also pleaded guilty in the case — former director of engineering Nishad Singh and co-founder Gary Wang — are set to be sentenced in October and November, respectively.

Man arrested for animal cruelty after dog found tied to post in floodwaters ahead of Hurricane Milton

Florida Highway Patrol

(TAMPA, FL) — The former owner of a dog that was left tied to a post off a Florida highway in floodwaters ahead of Hurricane Milton’s landfall has been arrested for animal cruelty, officials announced Tuesday.

The dog was found up to its chest in floodwaters off Interstate 75 in Tampa on Oct. 9, as many residents were evacuating due to Milton, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

A state trooper rescued the dog, now known as Trooper, the department said. Florida Highway Patrol shared a video on social media last week of the dog tied to the post with the caption, “Do NOT do this to your pets please…”

The former owner of the dog — identified by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles as Giovanny Aldama Garcia, 23, of Ruskin, Florida — was arrested on Monday for aggravated animal cruelty, a felony.

State Attorney Suzy Lopez, whose office is prosecuting the case, also announced the arrest on Tuesday, saying, “We take this crime very seriously and this defendant will face the consequences of his actions.”

Aldama Garcia was released Tuesday on $2,500 cash bond, according to online jail records. ABC News’ attempts to reach him were unsuccessful. Online court records do not list any attorney information.

Man taken into custody for alleged social media threat to kill Trump: Sheriff

Cochise County Sheriff’s Office

(SIERRA VISTA, Ariz.) — An Arizona man was taken into custody in connection with an alleged social media threat to kill former President Donald Trump, according to officials.

Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, of Benson, was taken into custody on Thursday without incident, a Cochise County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson told ABC News.

Syvrud was wanted for “suspicious activity,” the sheriff’s office in southeastern Arizona said.

“Syvrud is being sought as an investigative lead for threats to kill a presidential candidate,” the sheriff’s office said in a press release on Facebook.

The sheriff’s office did not provide any additional details on the alleged threats, including the name of the candidate. However, two sources told ABC News the alleged social media threat was directed at Trump.

Trump was scheduled to visit the U.S.-Mexico border in Cochise County on Thursday.

The U.S. Secret Service is aware and monitoring the incident, according to sources.

“The U.S. Secret Service investigates all threats against our protectees. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further at this time,” a Secret Service spokesperson said.

An FBI spokesperson said they are aware of the incident but deferred to the local sheriff’s office for further comment.

Syvrud was also being sought for several outstanding warrants, including failure to appear for a DUI in Wisconsin and failure to register as a sex offender and a hit and run in Graham County, Arizona, the sheriff’s office said.