close
Tuesday March 19, 2024

North Korea embassy attack: American held for extradition to Spain

By AFP
April 25, 2019

WASHINGTON: A former US Marine who allegedly took part in an attack on North Korea’s embassy in Spain has been ordered by a judge to be held without bail pending extradition.

Documents filed in federal court in Los Angeles late on Tuesday said Christopher Ahn was wanted by Spain for breaking into Pyongyang’s embassy in Madrid, stealing items and causing injuries in the February 22 raid by a group of anti-North Korea activists.

Ahn, 37, from Chino, California, was arrested in California on April 18 on an extradition request from Spain. He allegedly belonged to a group calling itself "Cheollima Civil Defense" which undertook the commando-style assault on the embassy compound.

Wielding knives and fake guns, the attackers tied up embassy occupants and stole computers and other materials. The group, which seeks the ouster of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, was led by Mexican national Adrian Hong Chang.

Hong, who spent much of his life in the United States as a consultant and activist, fled to the US after the raid where he met with FBI officials in New York and Los Angeles. Since then his whereabouts have been unknown. Lee Wolosky, a lawyer associated with the group, suggested to CNN that he had gone into hiding after authorities tried to arrest him.