By North Korea has identified the person being detained for illegally entering the country:
North Korea on Monday disclosed the identification of an American citizen whom it has detained since late January for illegal border crossing, saying he will stand trial.
“The organ concerned of the DPRK decided to indict for trial Aijalon Mahli Gomes, male U.S. citizen, born on June 19, 1979 and residing in Boston, Massachusetts State, who illegally entered the country as his crime has been confirmed,” the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a one-paragraph report. DPRK stands for the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. [Yonhap]
I did some Internet researching into this person andwhat I found was a Aijalon Gomes that worked at Liberty Mutual Insurance as an after high school job way back in 1996, which matches the detained Gomes who is of the same age and from New England. I also found a Aijalon Gomes working as a teacher in Pocheon, Gyeongi-do province. I believe this same Gomes is the one that left this comment on a Korean hair removal website hoping to get hair removed from the back of his neck. In the posting he says he is an African-American who lives in Uijongbu. Pocheon is just down the road from Uijongbu.
That is all I could find out about this person on the Internet. If I had to guess I would say this guy probably may be pulling a Robert Park because his first name Aijalon is a religious name and his middle name of Mahli is another religious name. Robert Park went to North Korea to bring the word of Jesus and I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy wasn’t trying to do the same thing. If he was than I think he is going to get the same treatment as Robert Park.
1:25 am on March 22nd, 2010 1
He was indeed an English teacher at Sinbong Elementary School in the Songu-ri area of Pocheon. He lived about a block from me when I was living in Songu-ri and teaching English at CHA University nearby. He attended a couple different churches in Seoul and Uijeongbu.
1:31 am on March 22nd, 2010 2
He's a spy. I know that to be the truth. Keep him, find him guilty, execute him. We >DONT< want him back.
1:40 am on March 22nd, 2010 3
[DELETED BY ADMIN - Welcome to the spam que]
2:06 am on March 22nd, 2010 4
That was totally uncalled for.
3:17 am on March 22nd, 2010 5
I met Aijalon in Seoul at the church I attended. He was a very sweet spirited man who was really passionate about prayer. He and Robert Park were friends.
3:22 am on March 22nd, 2010 6
That's the Aijalon I know. I certainly don't condone his foolhardy actions, but I pray for his well-being and perseverance through the hell he must be enduring now.
4:22 am on March 22nd, 2010 7
Not being racist, but if he is black, then he has little or no chance of getting out of there. They will look at him as being African not American. Poor him. Its the same with China as well…they dont care what passport you have, they just look at your face and skin colour. And also his name does not sound International or American…it sounds African.
4:43 am on March 22nd, 2010 8
"He and Robert Park were friends."
Birds of a feather flock together… cuckoo, in this case.
The last decade was so irritating because people got money, fame and attention for being notorious rather than talented.
Face it. Any dipshyt can walk across the boarder… and several have.
A talented person, if that's what they chose to do, would have detailed plans to accomplish their overall goals and they would have backup plans for those. They would have a politically and media-connected support team and would have laid groundwork to insure they had minimal discomfort and maximum chance of release.
…much like Ling and Lee… but for reasons more altruistic than self-promotion.
Now people are standing in line to do stupid stuff for 15 minutes of Look At Me Fame which results in no real accomplishment.
Knock it off.
That is soooooo 2000s. This is a new decade.
Get your shyt together.
4:55 am on March 22nd, 2010 9
So what's up with him saying then that he wants to work for the North Korean army (see here)?
That would have to either be a lie on the KCNA's part back in January, or a ruse on his part, which could explain why he's now on trial.
7:49 am on March 22nd, 2010 10
"…I think he is going to get the same treatment as Robert Park."
Let's pray he gets at least that, or worse. It'll help him prove his faith.
What a maroon…
9:07 am on March 22nd, 2010 11
What kinds of sermons were the pastor of your church preaching?
If we find out a third member of a church they shared crossed the border, I'd say someone should look into that.
9:36 am on March 22nd, 2010 12
Sounds like a coerced statement… Robert Park made similar ones while he was in Nork custody.
9:40 am on March 22nd, 2010 13
[...] primary source of informationwas the ROK Drop site. The conclusion there is that Aijaon Mahli is another Robert Park–and that he is likely [...]
9:53 am on March 22nd, 2010 14
But Robert Park's "coerced" statement (which he has yet to publicly disavow) came at the end of his stay, but Mr Gomes's "coerced" statement was at the beginning.
If he were trying to pull a Robert Park, I would think he would have done it in a way more similar to what Robert Park did.
10:07 am on March 22nd, 2010 15
#6, The North Koreans are actually quite friendly of people from African countries. It would have been better for him if he was an African born who wandered across the border than an American citizen.
10:27 am on March 22nd, 2010 16
Though we've seen a lot of reports about Robert Park being tortured — most of it stemming from speculation before he was even released — we really don't have solid evidence of it. And the Accidentally On Purpose Tourists™ (Laura Ling and Euna Lee) described decent treatment that even led to camaraderie of sorts with their jailers.
So I'm not so sure it's all that prudent to automatically assume Mr Gomes will get such bad treatment during his stay at the Pyongyang Palazzo, regardless of what prison term he is sentenced to.
11:02 am on March 22nd, 2010 17
Oh right the infamous being groped by a group of North Korean female interrogators.
1:29 pm on March 22nd, 2010 18
Mentally unstable, a Robert Park wanna be. A martyr in his own mind.
Considering he will be tried and convicted, and not held in the same facility of Ling and Lang, the US state department should do what they did for the POWs of the Pueblo. Forget about him until later when the negotiations are more favorable to a nuclear free North Korea.
4:21 pm on March 22nd, 2010 19
Its not North Korean ship who spied on US.
Its US who spied on North Korean waters.
Actually Pueblo is not the only time US spied Korea.
Koreans want US out from Korean peninsula since the biginning, but they dont ever wanna leave, started Korean war, and lots of massacre.
4:39 pm on March 22nd, 2010 20
Your an idiot!
6:02 pm on March 22nd, 2010 21
The United States only started the Korean War if the Soviet Union in 1950 was a myth. It was not, you fail.
6:03 pm on March 22nd, 2010 22
That was to Dongsoo
6:11 pm on March 22nd, 2010 23
Dongsoo, I know that what you said is a lie, yet I will defend you to the death for spouting such lies. Because I'm an American. And I know that you can spew such lies because my grandfathers gave their lives so that you and south/north Joseon born can tell such lies. It is not up up to us Americans to wish you dead, it is up to us to either break free of you or listen to you. Either way we still keep the Nippon (Japanese) Clan at bay from colonizing you again, Sometime we wonder why. With friends like you… Thank God a Majority of South Koreans are not like you. Still it is your right to hate us, and for the time being our obligation to protect your right to hate us.
8:18 am on March 23rd, 2010 24
If they think of his as an African it will be a blessing. One of the North's primary enemies is the US. His name doesn't sound "international"? What does that even mean?
9:25 am on March 26th, 2010 25
Dongsoo is an idiot
6:17 am on April 6th, 2010 26
Several black American soldiers defected to NOrth KOrea during the Korean War, although I don't believe any are still living there. NK has hosted Muhammad Ali and invited Michael Jordan and Michael Jackson to come to their country for a 'peace festival' in the late 90s. EVERYONE IN THE WORLD knows that there is a very large black American population. Even your average North Korean worker knows who Michael Jordan is, and probably Tiger Woods and Will Smith too.
12:17 pm on April 6th, 2010 27
I was disturbed today to find out this news.. I am an English teacher living in Uijeongbu, and Aijalon was the first native English speaker I met in Korea. Was he a spy? Well, if he was then he was the best spy ever, because to me he seemed like an extremely kind, well-dressed, religious man. Indeed, the only reason I met him is because he was so well-respected at my own school, which he only worked at for 3 days because they were not compensating him properly. I can't imagine what possessed him to do what he did, but I can tell you he was not trying to join the North Korean army. However, I haven't seen him for several months. In that span of time he was sent me several strange religious text messages that I just chalked up to him being a Jesus freak. Both my parents are protestant ministers, I am familiar with these people and I didn't read much into it. But this is just to say that he was very "in touch" with God. So I would say that he probably felt led by God to go to North Korea, for some purpose. Probably to help people. Now, I don't believe in this sort of thing, but from what I knew of him, that seems to be the most likely explanation. I'm not saying it was a good idea at all, but trust me when I say that Aijalon was harmless. Also, his name might seem like a strange alias, but Aijalon and Mahli are both characters from the bible. My first and middle name are from the bible, they're just more normal in society. Let's keep in mind, he parents are religious black people
12:22 pm on April 6th, 2010 28
upon further research, I was quite right. check the link. also, pardon the grammatical errors, I hate that I missed them
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el9tgCSbCpQ&fe…
9:58 pm on April 6th, 2010 29
That's a load of sh*t! Since the racism mostly lies within our own country it's safe to say that his sentencing was simply a political statement. He will be back in the US just like the other 2 women Bill Clinton brought back last year. They didn't have 'international' sounding names either… as you call it. Could the real reason be that you haven't really traveled anywhere and are just mad that this man for standing up for his beliefs?
11:58 am on May 1st, 2010 30
[...] ROK Drop, 3/22/2010 [...]
11:21 pm on July 8th, 2010 31
The North Koreans are saying that Aijalon Mahli Gomes tried to commit suicide. This may mean he's coming home soon, but it might also mean they'll make a lame attempt to get some sort of concession out of his release.
1:49 am on July 9th, 2010 32
I'm curious…
Why the complete media blackout compared to Ling/Lee?
Aijalon Mahli Gomes went to North Korea with more open, honest and pure intentions… yet the MSM is as quiet as a nun's fart.
It would almost seem that a track record of elitist-leftist support is more important than intentions based on silly concepts like freedom or human rights.
5:09 am on July 9th, 2010 33
He is there because he wanted to be there. He is no different than a defector.
6:16 am on July 9th, 2010 34
Dongsoo is most likely a North Korean, or even a North Korean spy. I remember doing Physical Training with my unit outside camp essayons – east side of uijongbu. I remember the young born after the war being upset we were there, and the old who remember standing up and saluting us as we ran by. I left when (i forget name its been years) the former president of the north became ill and was on his death bed and everyone became scared the north would invade to bury him in seoul like he wished. As we drove to the turtle farm for my processing out all of a sudden the youth were passing me american ciggarettes and asking if there would be war. I remember the communist propaganda preaching that the leaders of the north were gods coming to liberate us being thrown over the fance of the base. I remember a lot – this man Dongsoo must be from the north to have his facts so misguided.
1:28 pm on July 9th, 2010 35
@ChickenHead
He went there voluntarily, Lee and Ling were taken by force (at least that is their story). Do you see the difference?
6:43 pm on July 9th, 2010 36
Hmmm…
That seems to be a reasonable theory.
How does Evan Hunziker fit in?
10:50 pm on July 9th, 2010 37
Evan went voluntarily as well. He was a violent drunk Christian idiot who wanted to evangelize.
2:13 am on July 10th, 2010 38
ChickenHead wrote:
Why the complete media blackout compared to Ling/Lee?
A fair question (which I incorporated into into this post on the Swedes visiting Mr Gomes at the request of the North Koreans, following his suicide attempt).
While I'm not so certain we can automatically assume the "honest and pure intentions" of Mr Gomes (certainly his mentor seems to have a Moses or Messiah complex of sorts, and it's not at all implausible that either or both would seek book deals after their ordeal is over), I think it's reasonable to assume that Laura Ling's sister's political and media connections played a very big role in publicizing her plight and getting something done. She makes that point herself in the book they co-wrote.
But I don't think that's all there is to it. For starters, there isn't really a "complete media blackout," as Chicken Head describes it. I've written two stories in as many days about him because he has been in the media (the one in comment #31 which got this thread rolling again and the one on the Swedish visit). The media tends to report what comes down the pipeline, and a big part of the answer to that question is that Mr Gomes's people have not been as effective (and perhaps haven't been trying to be as effective) at publicizing Aijalon's case as Laura Ling's family had been.
Even in that particular famous case, if it had been just Euna Lee that was imprisoned, not Laura Ling, there may have been considerably less publicity, even though Ms Lee works for the same "elitist-leftist" news outlet.
Another factor is that Mr Gomes is not a first of any significant kind. He is not the first American in a long time to be imprisoned in the North, as were Evan Hunziker in 1996 and the Lee-Ling team in 2009. Nor is he the first American to voluntarily walk into North Korea to demand human rights from the DPRK; that would be Robert Park.
So his story is important enough to report on when new news comes down the wire, but not important enough to follow on a daily basis, à la the BP oil spill, where no news is also news. If you want to change this, you must convince his family or his church or some other related group to do news-making events.
6:26 am on July 10th, 2010 39
There was a media blackout on the Ling-Lee case because Lisa Ling asked for one. When Laura Ling understood that the North Korean leaders wanted publicity, she commnucicated that to Lisa, who then went on CNN. Read all about it in the Ling sisters' book "Somewhere Inside". Also order "The World is Bigger Now" by Euna Lee and Lisa Dickey, which will go on sale September 28.
6:23 am on July 11th, 2010 40
the guy is just another commie nut case,please keep him we don't want him back.
8:50 pm on August 23rd, 2010 41
Bible thumping idiot, now Carter has to go get his butt. What a moron. N. Korea was probably going to keep him, until he started preaching to them. We should stick him in a hard labor camp here as a homecoming gift.
3:28 pm on August 24th, 2010 42
He deserves to rot in prison (or better yet be worked to death) for pushing the Christian agenda on the already weakened people of North Korea! Do these missionaries not realize that their infiltrations of the border only help North Korean authorities further seal off their citizens from escape to freedom by pointing out breaks in the border's security? The attempted Christianization of Korea is one of the darkest points in our history, and the silent minority of Atheists/Agnostics & Buddhists of Korea need to rise up and stomp out this perversion.
4:14 pm on August 24th, 2010 43
Somehow, the idea of Buddhists stomping anything is refreshingly absent.
Ever notice that, regardless of belief, nobody every complains about Buddhists?
4:35 pm on August 24th, 2010 44
Somehow, the idea of Buddhists stomping anything is refreshingly absent.
Ahem.
4:36 pm on August 24th, 2010 45
Let's try that again…
Ahem.
6:39 pm on August 24th, 2010 46
kushibo 45, you had to go all the way back to Columbus Day, 1999 to find an example of stompin' Buddhists. I like the 404 error (kushibo 44) better. Euna Park 42, the Romans tried to stomp out this perversion almost two thousand years ago. They failed miserably. Sparky Dixion 41, Carter is a Bible-thumper too, so it's going to be all right.
6:48 pm on August 24th, 2010 47
Glans, I chose that one because it was so egregiously bad that it was on the American national news.
But actually, in some of the more violent confrontations between the government and chinboistas, there are monks involved. Nowadays as well as in the past. I'm too lazy to find any links; it is something so commonplace that it doesn't get much specific mention in the media.
7:56 pm on August 24th, 2010 48
Good example, Kushibo.
May I rephrase…
Somehow, the idea of Buddhists stomping anything is refreshingly UNCOMMON.
I think the only thing that is going to counter the violence perpetrated by Islam, Christianity and Buddhism, is more funding for the anti-Ahimsa branch of militant Jainism.