Sons reveal on state-run website he died in November of a fatal stroke
The only US soldier known to still be living in North Korea after defecting more than five decades ago died last year pledging his loyalty to the “great leader Kim Jong-un”, his sons said.
James Joseph Dresnok was among just a handful of American servicemen to desert following the Korean war, crossing the heavily fortified demilitarised zone in 1962.
He went on to appear in North Korean propaganda films and was believed to be the last US defector in the country, the others all having died or been allowed to leave.
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In a video interview posted on the state-run Uriminzokkiri website, Ted and James Dresnok, his two adult sons, confirmed their father suffered a fatal stroke in November last year.
“Our father was in the arms of the republic and received only the love and care of the party until his passing at age 74, ” said Ted Dresnok, the elder of the two.
Brown-haired and hazel-eyed, he wore a Korean People’s Army uniform in the video like his brother, adorned with a badge depicting the North’s founder Kim Il-sung and his son and successor Kim Jong-il.
Both men were born in North Korea, and spoke Korean with a heavy northern accent.
“Our father asked us to render devoted service to our great leader Kim Jong-un, ” said Ted Dresnok, who also goes by the Korean name Hong Soon-chol.
