“This case is unlike any that anyone could have ever imagined.” The predicament of Christopher Ahn, an American citizen who has managed to ensnare himself in a web of intrigue involving the United States, Spain, and North Korea, is described in such words by a federal judge.
You’ll hear tales of heroic rescues, political killings, and staged kidnappings tonight.and you’ll have a special understanding of North Korea, the most remote nation on earth.
Regarding this peculiar tale, there are nearly as many questions as there are answers.nonetheless, it’s evident that Christopher Ahn is in danger.
Born and reared in Southern California, Christopher Ahn, 43, is the son of Korean immigrants. Ahn enlisted at the age of 19, serving in Fallujah.He co-founded a consultancy company and received his MBA from the University of Virginia after his return from Iraq.
However, the self-described “do gooder” took up an odd pastime seven years ago: assisting North Korean diplomats in defecting.
Chris Ahn If I turned away from someone who was pleading for assistance, I don’t believe I could look at myself in the mirror ethically.
How many North Koreans did you assist in defecting, Sharyn Alfonsi?
Chris Ahn I usually make an effort to exercise care and avoid talking too much about
Sharyn Alfonsi: Is it a few, many dozen? Give us some context for our conversation. Or was this only one or two before I had to leave?
Chris Ahn: Well, more than one or two, I believe. It’s also fewer than a dozen.
Ahn claims he carried it out in collaboration with a clandestine, improvised organization of activists known as Cheollima Civil Defense. They said they assisted well-known North Koreans in defecting.
Chris Ahn: Rumors circulated among North Korean diplomats regarding this peculiar group operating outside the country.
Sharyn Alfonsi: Was it an ill-defined collection of individuals?
Chris Ahn: Indeed, it was.
Sharyn Alfonsi: To what extent are we referring?
Chris Ahn In all honesty, I have no idea what the number is.
One of the most oppressive governments in the world, the North Korean dictatorship, was the target of Cheollima’s ambitious objective.
This man headed the group that was underground. Adrian Hong was a Mexican-Korean citizen with a green card in the US. After dropping out of Yale, Hong started working for human rights.
Adrian Hong has declared himself to be “a freedom fighter who’s conducting a revolution,” according to Sharyn Alfonsi. Did you consider yourself a fighter for freedom?
Chris Ahn: Not at all. Not at all. I..I.Adrian obviously has reasons for doing what he wants to accomplish, but my goal was to simply provide hope to those who had none.
