Travis King, the U.S. Army private who made headlines last year for fleeing to North Korea, entered a guilty plea to multiple charges during a hearing at Fort Bliss on Friday, as reported by KTSM. King faced charges including desertion, escape from custody, solicitation of child pornography, assault on a non-commissioned officer, and several others.

In a turn of events his attorney, Franklin Rosenblatt, revealed that a plea agreement had been reached leading to the dismissal of some charges, including the possession of child pornography, "The remaining charges will be withdrawn and dismissed by the Army," Rosenblatt said, as per KVIA. King's decision to plead guilty came after his dramatic escape to North Korea from South Korea where he had been detained on assault charges and had been supposed to return to Fort Bliss in July 2023, the decision on accepting the plea deal or proceeding to a court-martial is now in the hands of the military judge.

Earlier, King's escape was executed by slipping away from his escorts at an airport and using a tour group as a cover to cross the highly militarized border into North Korea, as documented by Finger Lakes Daily News. Upon his return to the United States in September, he was placed in a reintegration program at the Brooke Army Medical Center, which focuses on the physical and mental well-being of Americans who have been detained overseas.

But the respite was brief as military prosecutors leveled eight criminal charges against King in October, during his stay which aimed to assist with his reintegration following the international incident, King was not immediately subject to disciplinary actions out of consideration for his medical needs, a detail that underscores the complexity of dealing with service members embroiled in international incidents.