The Diplomat
The North Korean Embassy in Spain is asking the US government to extradite one of those responsible for the attack on the diplomatic headquarters in Madrid in February 2019, in which a group of men stole several computers and hard drives from the office, according to a statement sent to The Diplomat.
Specifically, North Korea is demanding the extradition of former Marine Christopher Ahn, a US citizen of North Korean descent living in the United States, who is under house arrest pending a decision on his extradition to Spain to stand trial.
“After the incident, the (Spanish) government asked, under the extradition agreement with the US, to arrest and hand over criminals who have fled to the US. However, the US has not intensified investigations into the US criminals involved in this case, nor has it handed over Christopher Ahn, whom it ‘arrested’ simply for form’s sake”, reads the North Korean embassy statement.
Ann, who served in the US Marine Corps as deputy chief of intelligence and operations, was arrested in Los Angeles in April 2019, but after posting $1.3 million (€1.19 million) bail, he was placed under house arrest, with a tracking bracelet to keep him from leaving the country.
In 2022, a US judge authorised the extradition to Spain but asked a higher judicial body to halt it, considering that, as detailed in a 52-page document to which Europa Press had access, although as far as its powers go it can only approve the order, it considers that Ann’s life is in danger and that he could be killed on Spanish territory.
In its communiqué, the North Korean Embassy accuses the US of “trying to build a public opinion that Christopher Ann has been ‘judged’ to be extradited, but this cannot be fulfilled once the Secretary of State opposes the sentence, citing ‘security of a US citizen’ as a reason”.
“The US assertion that diplomats from hostile countries are excluded from the exclusive rights and privileges of diplomats is a ‘gangster’ style violation of international law,” the statement added.
The embassy concludes by calling on the Spanish government to “make a positive effort for the prompt resolution of the case under the principle of independence and impartiality”.
North Korea has not had an ambassador in Madrid since the expulsion in 2017 of Kim Hyok Chol – who held that post – in response to the nuclear tests of the regime in Pyongyang. The diplomatic representation is headed by a Chargé d’Affaires.
The assault four years ago
On 22 February 2019, a group of citizens of various nationalities and North Korean descent entered the North Korean Embassy in Madrid with the intention of stealing documents and information from the Asian country.
According to the investigation headed by the judge of the Audiencia Nacional José de la Mata, the leader of the gang was Adrian Hong Chang, a Mexican citizen with residence in the United States, who met in the Embassy weeks before the assault with the ‘number one’ of the North Korean diplomatic representation in Spain, the charge d’affaires of the delegation Yun Sok So.
According to Yun Sok So, during the meeting Adrian Hong Chang used a false name and discussed business matters without arousing suspicion. On 22 February, the assailants came to the premises, where the chargé d’affaires also lives with his wife and son, and tied up several of the workers.
The North Korean diplomat claimed that he was beaten several times and locked in the basement of the building, where the assailants allegedly asked him to defect from North Korea, something he claims he refused to do.
Eventually, the assailants, some of whom have not yet been identified, stole several computers and hard drives and fled the Embassy to Portugal, from where they flew to the United States. After their arrest, the US authorities handed over the stolen material to the North Korean Embassy in Spain.
The investigation suggests that this information theft may have had something to do with the meeting that was scheduled just five days later between the then US President Donald Trump and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un in Vietnam.
North Korea has accused US intelligence services of masterminding the raid, with the aim of obtaining as much information as possible about their country ahead of the meeting.
The suspects in the raid are members of the self-styled dissident group Cheollima Civil Defense (CCD), also known as Free Joseon, which seeks to overthrow the leadership of the current North Korean leader.
