Who is US soldier Travis King detained in North Korea?

US soldier Travis King was detained by North Korea after he purposefully trespassed on North Korean territory after crossing the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) Tuesday. Here's what we know about the Private 2nd Class soldier.

The soldier was heading back to the US as he was facing disciplinary actions by the authorities. He was on his way but he suddenly turned around and joined the border tour where he, according to the US officials, deliberately crossed the border and disappeared.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters Tuesday that officials are "very early in the process of determining what, exactly, happened,” and that "there's a lot that we're still trying to learn."

"What we do know is that one of our service members who were on a tour, willfully and without authorisation crossed the military demarcation line. We believe that he is in DPRK custody," Austin added.

Here are some details about Travis King which have surfaced.

Detained for assault charges in South Korea

The 22-year-old soldier had been under detention for two months and was recently resealed as he was reportedly facing assault charges.

According to the reports quoted by People, King's detention was the result of allegedly hitting a South Korean national in a club last September.

The reports indicated that apart from being in prison he was also directed to pay nearly $4,000 for allegedly damaging public property by kicking a police car and being uncooperative while he was being arrested, speaking ill of Koreans.

The People reported that King was released from the South Korean prison on July 10 and was left for the US to face further military disciplinary action.

King Deliberately entered North Korea

The US soldier King was to board his flight to the US Tuesday but he left to join the group for a tour of the nearby Joint Security Area (JSA) — separating North and South Korea and is known to be heavily guarded by soldiers from both sides.

A witness told CBS News that the soldier laughed before running in between some buildings towards North Korea.

"I thought it was a bad joke at first, but when he didn't come back, I realised it wasn't a joke," the witness said.

"A US National on a JSA orientation tour crossed, without authorisation, the Military Demarcation Line into the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). We believe he is currently in DPRK custody and are working with our KPA counterparts to resolve this incident," the United Nations Command said Tuesday.

King was also chased by the South Korean army soldiers but could not catch him.

King under arrested by North Korea

According to the US officials, "the soldier is currently in DPRK custody and are working with our North Korean counterparts to resolve this incident."

But US officials are now "engaging" South Korean and Swedish officials on the apparent defection, the White House said Tuesday.

"The White House, the Department of Defense, the State Department, and also the UN are all working together to ascertain more information and resolve this situation," it added.

"I don’t have more to share beyond that. We are looking into this. We’re trying to get more information."

In his own remarks to reporters, Defense Secretary Austin said that the US is "closely monitoring and investigating the situation" and "working to notify the soldier's next of kin" before officially identifying him.

"I'm absolutely foremost concerned about the welfare of our troop," Austin said, "and so we will remain focused on this ... and this will develop in the next several days."